Griffin's Vengeance
by werewolfness
Summary: Griffin's mad. No longer just at the Paladins. Now he's going to get back at David too. With a furious Jumper on the loose, anywhere is possible... and anything can happen. So what happens when he meets up with yet another inexperienced Jumper?
1. Lair

Griffin's Vengeance

A Fan-Fiction by werewolfness

Chapter 1: Lair

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**I want to say hello to you all! And maybe explain a few things in advance... and tell you something important!**

**First of all... I'm werewolfness! Duh, I mean, it says so up there. For short, you can call me Wolfie. **

**Secondly, (Ha! This one's about the story!) I want you to know... This is a fanfiction of both the movie _Jumper_ and the book, _Jumper: Griffin's Story by Steven Gould_.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Jumper, Griffin, or the concept. That all belongs to Steven Gould and the people who made the movie. My original characters, however, are my own, and if you touch or take them then I shall destroy you.**

**Thirdly... I want to recommend, if you haven't already, for you to read the book. It's really good, and it explains a whole lot about Griffin's past. Also, if Griffin is your favorite character (like me!) then it's pretty cool just to read a story that's totally all about him. (I'm sorry, but I kind of dislike David. Griffin is way better, and PWNs all.)**

**With all of that said, please enjoy the story! **

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He had to move. He knew it even before it began.

David was a formidable opponent. Even his years of karate and constant training couldn't ensure a victory. And being stuck in a tower surrounded by electricity didn't help much.

_Tricky bastard._

Though, he had to admit, he was kind of proud of him. Under all of the rage and fury. He finally struggled free of the crackling electricity, tangled wires, and mangled metal. David had just left him there. Didn't even come back. Left him. Abandoned him.

Stupid jumper, David was. Risky, incapable of understanding the reasons for what he had been about to do. Someday he would get him back, if the stupid git was still alive. If he had saved his girlfriend.

Somehow, he knew that David was still alive, and he also knew that the twit didn't expect to ever see him again.

He should have been dead. The electricity that had been coursing through him hadn't exactly been controlled to the usual 10,000 volts… but he had survived, stumbled out of that mess of twisted metal and into a battlefield.

Where the hell was he?

Staggering almost blindly, twitchy and trying desperately to gain control of his muscles once more, the rage grew. A rumbling, tumbling, torpedoing vortex of fury, and he wanted so bad to just take it out on the world… but especially David. Because of him he had to move his lair… again. How many times now? Three? Four? He had never had a stable home that lasted more than a few years, and his last one had been the best one yet. He just had to hope that the Paladins hadn't taken all of his stuff. Ruined everything. He had to hope nothing was on fire either. Had to hope that Roland was dead, so that he could move on to another big Paladin and be done with him. Hope. Oh how he hated the word. He had put so much into it and gotten nothing out of it, that he didn't expect anything anymore. He had to get it himself.

Straightening, he glanced around. He was definitely in a war zone. Where? He didn't know. Didn't care. He had followed David's jumpscar. Shaking his head only to find that the forceful movement brought pain pounding in his temples, he jumped.

It was a sloppy jump, and sand, dirt, and rubble came with him. His lair was a mess, and yes, a few things were on fire. He quickly grabbed the sheets off his bed and patted the fires out, scowling the whole time. David had ruined everything… all to save his little girlfriend. What was her name? Ah, yes… Millie. What a waste of time. It was all going to end bad in the long run. One or both of them were going to die.

Sighing, with the fires now out, he straightened again and glanced around his lair. Too bad. It had been a nice place.

Griffin O'Connor was a man who looked to be in his twenties, 5' 7" tall and short for his age, though he didn't care much anymore. His brown hair was tousled from his recent fight with David, there were scorch marks on his clothes and skin, and cuts in a few places on his knuckles. In reality, he was a mess, and wanted nothing more than to shower and call it a day, but he had work to do.

Grabbing a duffel bag, he packed up everything that was really important. The sketches. Those were the most important. His drawings of the Paladins, of their faces, who they were, where they had been seen, how important they were in the hierarchy of the secret organization that hunted him and all Jumpers. He stuffed it all away into his duffel bag and then looked around the room. Nothing else was as essential as these. His sketches of places couldn't be replaced all that easily, but they still weren't all that significant in the long run. So, finding the sketch of a desert oasis he had visited once, long ago, he searched his mind for the memory of that place… and jumped there. He dropped the duffel bag and jumped away. There wasn't a town within miles of that place, so his Paladin data would be safe for the meantime. Now he just needed to find a new place to set up his lair. Fast.

This part wasn't so easy. He had to pick someplace remote, safe, preferably with a cave… one he could blast the entrance closed to. Now there was something he would have fun doing. Blasting rock into rubble. That might clear his mind of his anger for a while. At least while he was stealing the supplies for it. And while he was busy finding a place to go.

He headed to a London library. He'd been there many times before, so it was easy for him to picture in his mind, without the help of the sketch he had of the outside.

Griffin had jumped to his favorite corner, the only corner that normally remained unoccupied. It was dark, closed off, and in the politics section. Who in their right mind would want to wander there? He stepped over to one of the computers after glancing around furtively and wondering whether or not any Paladins were around. No sign. Good. They could sense him jump if they were close enough. He used this place often enough that he had reason to worry, too, but it was the best library he knew of, and he knew he could escape them if they came.

Sitting down and making himself comfortable, he brought up the internet and did a search. Under a search for uncharted islands, he found a good lead. A small archipelago of islands in the Caribbean were his first good find. They were charted, yes, but they had never been inhabited and no buildings had ever stood there. According to the article he read, they were now a nature reserve, and no airplanes or ferries went to or from them. They were made up of low shoreline that rose to peaks, cliffs and rocky outcrops. Perfect… if he could find one with a good cave. Griffin got satellite pictures of each of the islands and then walked out of the library. Once he had gotten a few blocks away, he slipped into a dark, empty alley.

With a jump, he was there.

It was even more beautiful in the flesh. Of course it was. The pictures had been digital and blocky. Satellite pictures. He loved satellite pictures… they made his life so much easier… but that was beside the point. It still took his breath away, temporarily put his rage on hold. The island was tropical, animals scurrying away from the gust of stale air from the library that came with him. No one was here… but here was a no go. Though the island was exactly as it had been said to be, it didn't have a cave. Just a rocky hill that ended in a point, covered partially with vegetation.

So he tried the next one.

Griffin didn't know the names of the islands. He didn't bother to. There were five, and he was checking them out, one by one.

On the fourth island, he found the perfect place. Well, almost perfect. The cave opening was small, but it widened into a large cavern with stalactites and stalagmites lining the sides. It was slightly damp, but not to the point of being horrible. He had to jump back to get a flashlight though, because the cave was pitch black once he got far back enough.

It would do nicely. The largest part of the cave was 40' x 20' by his approximations, and then the tunnel went on a bit farther, ending in a smaller, around 15'x7' grotto. The island was the second largest, around six miles long, and populated with much the same wildlife as the last three. Birds, birds, and more birds. Some rodents… a few lizards. No problem.

He still checked the other one. The last island. But he found no better than what he had already discovered. So he went back, committed it to memory, and then went back to London. By this time, it was already around midnight, and he jumped into the hardware store. Griffin stole bags of cement and the proper tools needed to make a flat floor for his new home. He then took it back to his island and got to work.

By the time dark had fallen in the Caribbean, he had poured all of the cement and created was would soon be a level floor for his new lair. Griffin had even signed his name, and put the date. Once more to keep his mind off things. To occupy him with making it look almost perfect. Work helped to numb the pain of David's betrayal. Even though it had only been a temporary partnership from the beginning, he hadn't minded the company… until he had been trapped him in an electric current. Stuipd git hadn't even thought twice about coming back to help him while he had struggled for hours to break free. The work helped, and he was almost sad when it was done. Almost.

Once the cement had dried, he jumped back to his old lair to retrieve some of his landscaping lights. He hadn't expected it to take them so little time to find the place again. At least Roland hadn't been there. That was a good sign.

There had only been a few, all male, and they had just been arriving through the front door, having followed the coordinates with the GPS tracking system in the jeep.

Griffin took care of them fast. In a matter of moments he had disarmed them, beaten two with a baseball bat, and punched one in the face with one of his jump attacks. He had then taken the Paladins to his new favorite drop off zone. A shark infested area of water off Cuba. The anger had helped, but Griffin found himself wishing that they had been harder to fight. Maybe then he would have had something else to do. More time to occupy. More anger to be vented off.

He jumped back to his old lair and, keeping a wary eye out for more Paladins, began moving his things. It wouldn't take them long to realize that their buddies had gone missing. It wouldn't take them long to figure out where he'd gone, either. So he moved everything to the oasis that night. The same place he had stored his sketches the day before. Then he took the jeep and turned it back the way it had come, putting a brick on the gas pedal and jumping out of it as it drove off on its own.

When the lair was empty of everything, he bid it farewell and jumped back to London. Griffin then walked to the station and got on a train. He wasn't paying attention to where it was going when he bought the ticket. He wasn't going to stay the whole trip. Only when he was a few miles away did he dare to jump again. He didn't want any Paladins knocking on his new door too soon.

He took from the oasis a few landscaping lights and set them up in his new Hole. Griffin then began the process of closing the entrance. He didn't want to blow it closed after all, afraid that if he risked it, the whole cave would collapse. He was also on a nature preserve. If by some stroke of rotten luck someone on a boat traveling nearby heard the blast, things could get nasty. So, he went around the five islands, collecting big rocks and jumping them back to the cave opening. Soon he had it covered, and a few gaps went all the way through the wall to provide ventilation at that end. At the other end, in the smaller chamber, there was a small hole going out to the surface. Not large enough to provide light, but enough to give the place a breeze. When it was ready, he began moving in his stuff, starting with the rest of the lights and the batteries and generator he needed to run them. He then brought the fridge, his safe that he kept the money and smaller weapons in, and then the larger weapons, the bed, the shelves, and the plywood sheets that he used to put his sketches on.

With everything set up besides the solar camping shower, he finally surrendered himself to his exhaustion. After trying desperately to escape the mangled metal trap David had left him in, finding a new lair, killing a couple Paladins, and moving all his things, which added up to a total of about 48 hours straight without a wink of sleep or food, he was happy to fall onto his bed and black out, despite his empty stomach and lack of sheets.

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**There you go! I know the chapter didn't have much action, but I had to sort things out and flip. You know the drill. (Or do you?) Anyways, keep in mind that though this chapter was mildly boring, I will be updating soon, and action is to come! I love reviews, so help to keep me motivated by commenting with love! Or helpful suggestions... or just love!**

**Till next time...**

**-Wolfie**


	2. Movement

Chapter 2: Movement

**Yay! Look at how fast that was! Aren't you proud of me? If not, then you should be. Normally it takes me months to post another chapter, and I did it in a day. Woah. Nice, huh?**

**I already had the chapter half typed to begin with though, so I guess I only get some of the credit... I'm just really excited about it though. Happy!**

**Alright! For being there one day, my Fanfiction had a surprising number of reviews! It seems that I already have two readers! I LOVE YOU GUYS!**

**Cube Fangirl: HI! Oh my God, you were the first reviewer! Do you know how much I love you right now? Lots. Thank you so much! It's people like you that motivate me to continue adding chapters. I'm so glad that you love Jumper fanfics too... that makes me so happy... and thank you! I liked the Caribbean Islands idea for the new lair as well... especially since I'm a Pirates freak and the Caribbean is an awesome place to set things. Keep reading and reviewing! I love the Love you're sending me!**

**Tinker Belle Blue: What a short, lame review. Oh my flip. I hate you. **

**JUST KIDDING! I SWEAR! I love you 'Laina! Thank you so much for reading my fanfic! And thank you so much for telling me that I did a good job. Hopefully you'll like this chapter even more! Aren't you glad that I updated so fast?**

**|| In case anyone was wondering, Tinker Belle Blue is one of my best friends, so I'm allowed to tell her that I hate her. She knows I don't mean it. Also keep in mind that I would never tell a random reviewer that their review sucked because it was short. Never. I love any and all reviews as long as they are not mean. Even criticism is welcomed on occasion. ;) ||**

**Now, without further ado, onto the story!**

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Griffin awoke to pain flaring in his abdomen.

At first he thought that the Paladins had somehow managed to track him, somehow managed to find his lair and get in… maybe through a jumpscar?

So when he fell off of the bed, clutching his stomach and didn't feel any blood, any cuts, wounds or gashes, and glanced around to see that he was alone in his lair, he realized that he was just hungry.

"Just hungry" was an understatement. He was starving. It had been so long since he'd eaten… Checking the date through is watch, he found that it had been nearly three days since he had eaten anything. He had been drinking water, but that was about it.

So, checking his wallet, he made sure that he had enough money for some fast food, and then jumped.

Griffin reappeared in San Diego, right next to a Burger King. It was a sloppy jump, but there wasn't much to bring with him, and the only evidence of how sloppy it actually was was the jumprot that hung in the air a few seconds after he showed up. He staggered into the Burger King and waited in line, resisting the urge to jump in front of the few people ahead of him.

He waited patiently… just barely.

When the woman who was manning the cashier took in his appearance and her eyes widened, he had to think hard on why she might be looking at him funny. It hit him that he was still dressed in his slightly charred clothes, in a few spots, bloodstained, and that his hair had to be a mess. She was about to ask a question when he interrupted her.

"I work in the mines outside town. Lunch break, you know?" His best attempt at an American accent… and it only worked a little bit. His British accent was still very apparent, even after years of practicing to change it if he had to.

She nodded, though her eyes were still wide, and fixed on a bloodstained hole in his shirt. There was a small cut on his shoulder. He hadn't even noticed. With an exasperated sigh, he ordered; enough food to feed a family of five. He used the excuse of bringing lunch to his buddies at work. When he left, the woman was talking to her manager and pointing to him as he walked off down the street. The manager was picking up a phone.

_Time to go._

Shaking his head, Griffin headed down a street and stepped into a doorway, jumping away quickly to his lair.

He ate quickly, finishing almost all of the food. When he was done, he felt bloated, but content. He then grabbed his shower things and filled up the solar camping shower before jumping. He arrived on the outside of his lair and found a good tree to hang the shower off of.

When he was clean, he headed back into his cavern and pulled on some jeans. His old clothes were ruined, and he had to throw out everything, even his favorite leather jacket, which was the most burnt of all. He sat on his bed and took out a med kit, cleaning and dressing the cut on his shoulder, given to him by a Paladin, though he didn't remember if it was from the ones that had found him in his lair after David had trapped him, or if it had been from the ones before. After that, he cleaned the small burns he had, one on his cheekbone, a few on his hands, and one on his left side.

Sighing, he pulled on a black t-shirt and a pair of tennis shoes before jumping again. He ended up in London, walking quickly away from his jumpsite and over to a good place to shop for jackets.

As he stepped into the store, he glanced around warily, though nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary. He walked over to the men's section and began to look at leather jackets. He soon found one that was very much like his previous one, but it had a few more pockets.

_Perfect… old bugger ruined my old one, and now I have an excuse to get a better one…_

Griffin paid for the coat and then left, slipping it on as soon as he was out of the store. It was a nice jacket, and it fit him well. Thinking of why he had a new jacket made him think of how his old one had gotten ruined, and that made him think of David and Millie. It had been three days… why not check the town?

He wanted to get David back. He wanted David to pay.

So, Griffin walked to the Underground, stepped onto a train, and then jumped away once he had gotten far enough to call it safe.

Though, calling jumping into a town where a whole load of Paladins had been located wasn't anywhere near calling it safe. Roland and a bunch of other important Paladins had been there. It was pure stupidity to jump there of his own free will… but he wanted to know what had happened.

Curiosity killed the cat… luckily he wasn't feline.

So he jumped there from memory to the little town from David's childhood. Right outside of Millie's apartment. And he found that it wasn't there.

_Clever bastard jumped the whole damned apartment!_

That was as close as he had seen to the Jumper that had tried to jump a whole building… and obviously, since it had worked, he was still alive.

How to proceed? To the nearest newspaper, and to watch out for Paladins.

He headed to the closest market and checked the newspapers. Nothing. Well, he had been a couple days late. Thanks to someone.

So he walked up to the cashier and asked politely if he had a copy of the newspaper from a few days ago, telling him that he wished to read the article on the missing chunk of apartment building a few blocks away.

"Made the front page, that one… didn't read it earlier, eh?" He said as he rummaged around behind the counter. "Here you go." Handing Griffin the paper, he bid him good day and told him that he could have it free of charge before turning to help another customer.

Griffin thanked him and then walked out, reading the newspaper as he went. He settled onto a city bench a couple blocks away to read.

So, neither of them had been found. The apartment owner was missing, and no one had been recorded hurt and taken to a hospital. No one knew what had happened, why part of the apartment had ended up in the river and more of it had ended up in the library.

_Brilliant, David. Just brilliant. Make a scene, why don't you?_

He sighed exasperatedly, leaning back against the bench. So, how was he going to proceed with finding them?

His attention was diverted from his thoughts as he caught movement in the corner of his eye. Someone dodging into an alley. Probably a Paladin. Luckily the street was filled with innocent bystanders. Unluckily the Paladins in the area had a sensitive with them. One that could sense his jumps. So, he would have to flee on foot… but where to? He looked at the paper again, to buy himself some time. He ended up getting an idea as he saw Millie's name on the page. Her full name. With a smirk, he walked off down the street, heading to a payphone. He grabbed the phonebook and leafed through it. The book was local, and the town's small size helped. He found two names that could be her parents and grabbed the pen attached to a chain on the small counter of the booth. Lifting up his sleeve, he quickly wrote the names and addresses onto his arm and then let his sleeve drop back down, replacing the pen and then exiting the booth.

He walked off down the street, debating on how to loose his pursuer. He didn't even know if there was more than one. Griffin sighed, tilting his head so that his neck would pop. He'd just have to get rid of them then. Without jumping. How messy. Oh well.

He stepped into an alley, passing a bum squeezed perfectly into a rotting cardboard box.

Ok, so he had to kill him… or them. But with what? Griffin's blue-gray eyes scanned the alleyway, searching for anything that could be used as a weapon. His gaze fell on a length of pipe protruding from a dumpster when more than one set of footsteps sounded at the end of the alley.

There was a whir and a pop and then the _whoosh_ of something coming towards him. As if he hadn't been electrocuted enough in the last three days. He grabbed the metal pipe and yanked it out of the dumpster, wrenching free a garbage bag that fell right in the way of the metal cable that had shot out of the Paladin's gun. It hit the bag right as he ducked, propelling it over him and hitting the dead end alley in an explosion of trash. Without waiting for them to reload, he spun around, flinging the metal pole at the two men at the end of the alleyway. It hit one in the face and he fell, his nose bleeding profusely, obviously broken. He didn't get up.

The other only hesitated a moment, glancing down at his fallen comrade before hefting up his gun. Griffin was already there. He hadn't jumped, but he had moved fast enough to get there in time. Almost. As Griffin's fist connected with the Paladin's face, he pulled the trigger.

The cables shot out, and one of the metal barbs at the end of the electrocuted wire, which was normally shot with enough force to stick into a brick wall, grazed Griffin's side. The serrated point ripped his flash easily, leaving a huge gash in his side and tearing a hole in the bottom of his new leather jacket. His left hand immediately went to the wound, which was just below his ribcage on his right side, slipping into the gash. He faltered slightly, and the Paladin recovered, slamming the gun he held into Griffin's back. He fell to his knees, coughing, bracing himself against the ground with his right hand, his left still clutching his side.

The Paladin kicked him, sending him sprawling onto the cement, coughing harder as he looked up at the man. He could jump away… he could escape…

_No. I can do this without jumping. I told myself I would._

The male grinned wickedly, pulling a pistol out of his jacket and aiming it at Griffin's head. "Say good bye!"

Griffin's right hand shot out, snatched the metal pipe off the ground, and then slammed it into the back of the Paladin's legs. The man crumpled with a small cry of disbelief, and Griffin rolled out of the way as he fell right where he had been lying. He staggered to his feet, still holding the pipe, before stepping over to the man.

"Good bye, mate." He said, grinning sickly before slamming it into the Paladin's head.

Once he was sure the both of them were dead, he dropped the pipe and examined his wound. It wasn't too deep, but it was bleeding badly, and he ripped off strips of the Paladin's jackets to bandage himself with. Once he straightened, tested his side by stretching, and checked the Paladins for ID, he started to step out of the alleyway when he noticed the homeless man watching him from his box.

His eyes were wide, and Griffin smirked. "You didn't see anything, mate." Pulling out a fifty dollar bill, he dropped it near the man and then walked out of the alleyway, towards one of the two addresses on his arm, no longer followed by Paladins.

The bum looked at the bill, looked up at Griffin's receding back, and then grinned a half toothless grin; picking up the money and heading off down the alley, dragging the box behind him.

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**There you go! An awesome, action filled update! Complete with a gory, bloody fight in which two Paladins are killed and left in the middle of an alley, and a drunk bum is paid off for silence. I love Griffin. He never ceases to amaze me... :)**

**Anyways, with that done, I hope you will review! Because everyone knows how much I love reviews... And maybe I will actually post a chapter three sometime soon... like... maybe even this week.... woah... amazing.**

**Until next update!**

**-Wolfie**


	3. Surprise!

**Chapter 3: Surprise!**

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**Hey guys! Love the reviews, welcome to my new readers… here are the replies!**

**Lovebuggy: I know. Lucky bum. I can't wait for David to get his arse kicked either. Looking forward to more of your reviews! **

**Nothing is What it Seems: Thanks a lot! I love reviews like this… See that guys? I got kudos! YAY! KUDOS! Lol. Thanks for the review. I hope you like this chapter as much as you liked the others!**

**unitykinkaid: Thanks! Hopefully this was soon enough. I know it took less time than the month long average wait. ****J**** And don't worry. I'm so excited about this that I'm sure I'll finish it… eventually.**

**Otterwarrior16: Thanks! I'm glad you like it, though, I must warn you, though there isn't strong swearing on a regular basis, it's bound to be in there somewhere sometimes. No one's perfect, and a little swearing helps keep the characters… well… in character. Especially Griffin. He swears a lot. ****J**

**Tinker Belle Blue: You know what? You really make me mad. I'm about to flip out on you… Just kidding. I swear it. Nicely done. Thanks for the long review… but try and keep it a little more on task, 'Laina… kay? -pats head- Was this update soon enough as well? I took a little longer, but not as long as usual still.**

**Alright, that's it for the replies! I tried to update sooner rather than later, and I think I did a pretty decent job at it. Congratulate me! You should be so proud! Usually I am the worst procrastinator in the world. Now, onto the story!**

**--**

The first address he chose was a no go. The woman had no idea what he was talking about when he spoke of Millie and David Rice's family. She was crabby too, an old woman who had lost her interest in the world long ago. Griffin quickly left that place. The old woman had begun to yell at him and threaten to throw things by the time he left.

With a sigh, he walked to the nearest bus station and took the bus so that he was nearer the second address before getting off to walk again. He soon branched off onto a road screened by trees, the autumn leaves falling around him as he walked. He couldn't help to admire the peacefulness of it… and then he remembered why he was walking down here.

He needed to find David. And to do that, he needed to find David's mom.

Griffin had a plan. David had said just days before that his mom had left when he was five. Griffin didn't really care why, but he wanted to find her. Maybe then he could lure him out and get his revenge. At least a fair fight. Hopefully he'd break David's nose… and a few other bones in his body.

The only problem was that he didn't know David's mom's name. Millie's mother might. Probably would. And, if she was able to get a hold of Millie, by a cell phone or something, then all the better. One step skipped.

So, as he passed an old, rusted swing set and stepped onto the porch, his hopes were high.

He knocked on the door, straightening his jacket and making sure that his bloodstain was well covered in the meantime. When a middle aged woman opened the door, he looked up, his blue eyes glinting.

"Are you Millie's mother?"

The woman looked utterly sad, and tears began to come to her eyes. "If you're a reporter, I don't know anything. She only called me once since her apartment… well… and she wouldn't tell me where she was or anything, and I don't have a number I can reach her by!"

_Smart. Maybe David's getting brains after all…_

"I'm not a reporter, and I'm not coming to ask you about Millie. I had a couple of questions about her boyfriend… David? He's an old chum of mine." Griffin said in the most charming, reassuring voice he could manage. Not too hard, and his British accent helped.

"Oh… David Rice? Nice guy… What do you need to know?"

"He wanted some help finding his mother… I have some experience with computers, but he disappeared before he gave me her name. I don't know where he went." He managed a troubled expression. "I bet they went off somewhere together… but I'm not too worried, he's a good guy, and he'll take care of her."

The woman nodded. "So you need to know her name?"

He nodded and gave a small smile. "It would help. I knew Millie's last name and looked you up in the phone book. I couldn't think of anyone else to ask, and I wanted to find her before he got back. Y'know… a surprise return gift or whatever."

The woman nodded. "Her name's Mary Rice… but it could have changed by now. If she got married." She looked thoughtful for a moment before her face lit up. "Oh! I think I have a picture of her, one of her and David, when they took Millie with them to the park one afternoon. She's older now, but I bet she hasn't changed much. Hold on, I'll get it." The woman disappeared into the house and didn't come back for a few minutes. Griffin was just starting to get impatient when she returned, holding a photograph.

"Here it is." She handed it to him. "I hope it helps."

"Thank you… would you like for me to return it? I could run it over to Kinko's and Xerox it…"

"No, no, no… You can have it. It was a double."

"I appreciate the help."

"No problem. Come back and visit sometime, eh? Mr…?"

"MacLand. Paul MacLand."

"Nice to meet you." She took his hand and shook it firmly before bidding him goodbye and shutting the door. Once he had reached the shelter of the branches of an old willow tree, he studied the picture. The three of them, David, his mother, and Millie, were at a park, the dappled sunlight coming through the trees on their laughing faces. He jumped away.

Griffin appeared again in San Diego. It was mid afternoon, and the local internet café was still open. He slipped inside and grabbed a seat by the door, opening the internet.

It took a very extensive search, three lattes, a couple of calls, and a whole load of manners in his charming British accent to finally figure out where she lived. Then all it took was a picture of her to confirm the name and address by comparing it with the picture he already had, and then a satellite picture of her house. By that time, it was nearing evening outside and the café was closing. He had just began to print out the satellite picture when there was the sound of someone clearing their throat behind him.

Griffin turned around, a politely curious expression on his face. "Yes?"

"We're closing, you need to pay for the time you spent on the computer and then get out." The male crossed his muscular arms over his chest, and Griffin resisted the urge to punch him in the face. How rude.

"Alright, mate. Give me a sec to close these windows and get my printout." He said almost too politely. The man's eyes narrowed in the slightest. He closed everything, logged off, and then walked over to the printer. He folded up the paper and then took out his wallet.

"How much is the charge?"

"Well, you were on the computer for five hours…"

Griffin pulled out two twenties and handed them to him. "Keep the change." He then walked out of the café with a roll of his eyes. He had given the man a generous tip, he hoped he would be excused for staying so late. With an exasperated sigh, he looked up at the sky and decided that it was time to get himself some dinner before going to David's mom's house.

He jumped to Thailand and bought himself some food, breakfast actually, on that side of the world. It was satisfying when you could eat breakfast in one place and then, hours later, eat breakfast for dinner halfway around the world.

He then sat there, in the gathering sunshine on a bench, studying the picture of the house. It was a nice house, but it was snowing. Cold. Great. With a sigh, he began to wonder what time it would be in that part of the world. His head had always been a little messed up with how often he was left juggling time zones around like a madman. He finally gave up and jumped there.

Griffin didn't realize his mistake when he got there, he just felt proud of himself for being such a genius. He had once had to arrive to places he had never been by normal means of transportation. Which, by all means, was fun once and a while, but when he was in a real hurry, or really wanted something done, he liked it when he could just jump there and be done with it.

He was about to walk up to the door and knock on it, when, to his extreme surprise, the door wrenched open when he was still yards away. A woman came rushing out of it… holding a very familiar looking gun.

Griffin's jaw dropped. No, he had to be dreaming. David's mom couldn't be… could she? What was she doing with a gun like that? Was he really just hallucinating?

He jumped, ten feet to the left. Her head wrenched around to follow him. Yep. She was a Paladin. And she was definitely Mary Rice.

_Go figure._

It was just his luck too, that he would jump right into the hands of a sensitive, and an armed one at that… at their house and everything. Not too smart. She had to have backup somewhere.

Griffin took a step back as the woman's eyes met his. Hers narrowed and she advanced, coming slowly into range to fire her weapon.

"So, what do we have here? A new jumper? No, you're older… why the sudden stupidity?"

Griffin snorted. "I was stupid alright, but now I have an _excuse_ to kill you."

"What?" She looked confused, but he knew that she was buying time, trying to inch close enough to fire and have a good chance of hitting.

He jumped farther away and far to the right. She spun around to follow him, gritting her teeth.

"Mary Rice, runaway mother of David Rice… twenties, short brown hair?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Of course you do. Especially a Paladin like you. You should know the kid who took care of Roland." Alright, now he was just going off on a whim, and it made him so mad to think of the fact that Roland was dead by David's hands instead of his own, but it made something click in Mary's features.

"_David's_ the one who got Roland?"

"Ah, I see some recognition there."

Her eyes narrowed again and she took another step closer. "What's your point? Why did you come here talking about David? Who are you?"

He grinned. "My name is Griffin O'Connor."

Her eyes widened. So she knew him then, did she? "Griffin! The infamous Jumper who's constantly causing us problems… What do you want?"

Griffin grinned. "What I usually want. To kill Paladins. This time though, I also want to get back at a certain Jumper."

"David. So you came here to get me as leverage, not knowing I was a Paladin."

"Not going to be easy, is it?"

"Nope."

--

**Thank you for reading! Please review! I love reviews! The newest chapter may or may not come out before summer starts, we'll have to see about that, but the updates will probably become fairly steady once summer begins and I have all the time in the world and nothing to do. I love you all! Thank you for helping me make this possible!**

**-Wolfie**


	4. Sensitives

Chapter 4: Sensitives

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**Hello again! It's been a little while, but I'm back again! My computer died a few weeks ago, so I was without internet or typing. It was horrible, I'll tell you. I'll get right onto the reviews, and then you can read the story!**

**Cube Fangirl: I like the part with Griffin and David's mother too. Don't worry, it gets even better! Keep reading and reviewing!**

**Lovebuggy: I'm sorry it seemed a bit off. I was getting tired and I was so close to finishing that I rushed a little bit. I think I did pretty well under the circumstances though. ;)**

**Nothing is What it Seems: Thank you so much! I liked that part too. I was so proud of myself because I made that up under interesting circumstances. Lovebuggy seems to think it was a little stiff, and you can look at the reply right above this one for reference or whatever. Lol. The battle does get pretty epic.**

**Buieruwen: Thanks! Griffin is awesome. And he will get his revenge… one way or another. I don't know how badly he's going to get David back, but I really dislike David sometimes, so it really depends on my mood when I finally get around to writing it. Lol. I don't think that they're ever going to team up though. I can't picture it at all. Griffin seems like the kind of person to hold a grudge he'd never get over it, though David might. **

**ShadowWolfDagger: Thanks for the review! I'll be looking forward to more!**

**Now, onto the story!**

**--**

Griffin watched her warily, wondering wryly what he had gotten himself into. He was normally more careful than that, but in his haste and natural impatience to exact his revenge on David, he hadn't taken his usual precautions. Now he had to watch her carefully. See what kind of a fighter she was.

She took a few steps forward and he adjusted himself accordingly, his feet crunching in the snow as he sidestepped and then backed up two paces. Her eyes narrowed and she took a few more steps forward, though a smile played on her features. He took a few more steps back, into a tree.

_Brilliant._

As soon as he backed into the tree, her finger pulled back on the trigger. Maybe he had been more in range that he had thought. Maybe she had been tricking him. Herding him. The cables were definitely losing altitude, but they would still hit him if he didn't move. So he jumped. Griffin didn't have too much time to think, so he just moved forward, the cables passing behind him and wrapping around the trunk of the tree. He didn't expect what came next.

Mary had reloaded immediately, and then fired again, right as he jumped. Now that he was closer to her, the cables were going to hit him square in the chest. Luckily, he reacted quickly enough to jump directly behind her.

_Now I know where he got it from…_

"Almost." Griffin said tauntingly, as she spun around, pulling out another cartridge and reloading. He had to hand it to her. She was much faster at this than most Paladins.

"I try." She replied, her words icy.

He jumped again, close to her, and she instinctively fired, though she missed as Griffin jumped away. It went on like this for a few minutes, with Griffin jumping close and then safely away, over and over again. As a result, she became more and more careful about firing off her weapon. She was using up all of her ammo, and the backup Paladins still hadn't arrived.

"Last bullet, eh? Better hope it hits. Then it's my turn…" Griffin said, advancing a few steps with a grin. When he was a few yards away, her finger tightened on the trigger and he jumped away. He appeared a few meters to the left, looking vaguely confused.

"Getting a little jumpy there, Griffin?" Mary asked all-too-sweetly, tapping her gun suggestively. She hadn't fired off her last available ammunition.

Griffin's eyes narrowed. "Just a bit. Getting a little more desperate?"

"Possibly." She sidestepped a few paces, and then advanced toward him. Griffin got the impression that she was herding him somewhere again, for a specific reason that might give her the advantage. His eyes narrowed as he took a hesitant step back. She took three more. He took one more tentative step back as she gained a few more paces on him, and then he couldn't resist any longer. He glanced backwards to make sure that he wasn't going to run into anything that could slow him down. Mary pulled the trigger.

In a way, it was the moment they had both been waiting for. For Griffin, she had fired her last shot, and he could now come closer and still be relatively safe. For Mary, he had made a fatal mistake that would give her that advantage she had been waiting for.

Griffin had been ready for the shot to go off, and he jumped. This time, he wasn't keeping his distance, since she had no more ammo, and he jumped right behind her. She had been expecting this, and in one swift movement, she had spun around and her fist connected with his side. Gripped in her hand was a small black tube, and he wouldn't have needed what happened next to be able to tell what it was.

10,000 volts of electricity coursed out of the black stick and through him, and he fell back, tripping over his own feet and writhing in pain. It was bearable, but as he twitched backwards and tried to jump, he knew that she had the upper hand. He flickered in and out of vision as Mary pulled out a dagger and looked down at him, a smirk on her face.

"I'm not new at this you know. What did you expect?" She then lunged for him, the dagger going for his throat, and he rolled to the side, staggering to his feet. He jumped away as soon as he could, only having to stumble a few feet away before he was able to. He didn't try to go any one place at all, which was why he ended up in the Empty Quarter.

He lurched over to the rock that had once adorned red paint splatters from days when he had played with his father. He sat down heavily on it with a groan.

"Good goin' Griff. You went and messed up again!" He scowled, looking around the barren ravine before sighing and shaking his head. A thought suddenly dawned on him, and he immediately jumped to his lair.

He walked over to his plywood wall of Paladins, still rubbing the spot where her shock stick had made contact with his skin, scanning the pictures. Roland dominated most of the area, but there were a few other important Paladins that he had up there as well. Sure enough, he saw her. He had only one picture of her, of the one time his cheap security cameras had picked her up when he had been doing some "fishing", and he hadn't bothered to sketch her yet. There was no questioning how he hadn't recognized her. The picture was fuzzy, black and white, and outdated. She had gotten a haircut since then. She had never been a priority of his anyway. He'd always been obsessed with Roland.

Sighing again and admitting defeat for the day, he jumped to London. It was late… early actually, as he found out when he entered the bar where he had first seen David. By the clock they had inside, it was roughly three in the morning. Around seven o'clock pm back in San Diego and… well, he didn't exactly know which time zone his newest lair fell in, and he was too lazy to try and try and figure it out. Instead, he walked over to the bar and ordered himself a beer while he tried to contemplate what to do next.

Griffin had found David's mother only to find that she was a Paladin. One messed up family, right? He hadn't gotten any closer to finding David. He had only confirmed that Roland hadn't returned from his mission, which meant that David was indeed alive… but it didn't necessarily mean that Roland was dead. He might still have work to do there.

No matter how much he tried to tell himself to grow up, Griffin still felt an odd sense of hope when he thought of the possibility that Roland might still be alive. It wasn't that he wanted the bastard to live, definitely not; just that he had been hunting him for ten years, so he hoped that he got a chance to dispatch of him himself. As he mulled through all of this over a beer, he still found no solution to his problem of finding David. The only reason he had been able to keep track of him before was because he had been such a reckless Jumper. Now that he had had a taste of the Paladins he would be more careful with his jumps.

After his second beer, he was done thinking it over. He was bound to meet up with David one way or the other. There was no use beating himself up about it because he couldn't think of a way to find him immediately. With a brooding expression adorning his features, he paid for the drinks and then walked out of the bar.

Griffin was just searching for an alley in which to jump home from when he heard it. _It_ was the unmistakable pop of a Paladin's electrified cable shooting gun. In the moment he realized that it wasn't being shot at him, he thought that he might need a shorter abbreviation for the thing. It was tedious just to try and _think_ the words "electrified cable shooting gun" all in a row. He resolved this problem by shortening it to ECG, for "electrified cable gun". Now that his mind was done thinking about random trifle things, it was time to move onto bigger problems.

Like who a Paladin would be shooting at at this hour in the middle of London. David? He didn't know. Wouldn't let himself hope for that much. But it had to be a Jumper. They didn't shoot ECG's at random passerby on the street. They didn't even shoot them at relatives or friends of Jumpers. Only Jumpers themselves.

There was another pop of an ECG and a cry of pain from the alley directly across the street from him. He silently stalked over and peered in.

It was dark, and he could barely see. As his eyes slowly adjusted to the dimmer lighting, he found that he could make out the dead end alley in front of him. Two Paladins with their backs to him were advancing on someone who was pinned to the brick by the cable stretched across their torso. The captive struggled feebly, twitching and writhing as the electric current coursed through them.

Griffin couldn't tell if the Jumper pinned to the wall was David or not. If it was, he was saving the Jumper so he could kill him himself… or at least beat him up and teach him a lesson. And if it wasn't? Then he was saving a Jumper from Paladins. No big deal. He didn't do it all the time, but he didn't meet up with Jumpers in distress all the time either.

He jumped to his lair, snatched the metal baseball bat that was propped up against the wall of the cave, and then jumped back to the alley, whistling sharply to catch their attention.

He hadn't needed to. The two Paladin's heads wrenched around and their gazes locked onto him as soon as he jumped there. _Sensitives, eh? This'll be fun._ They switched targets as he twirled the bat with one hand. It whistled through the air with a metallic whir as he smirked. "'Ello boys. Lookin' for someone to play with?" He took a step forward as one of them lifted their gun.

**00000**

**There you go! Another chapter! And, now that it's summertime, I'll be updating a lot more often! Big bonus for you guys, and I hope you enjoy.**

**BTW: Jumper came out on DVD on the tenth if you didn't already know that. I was uber-inspired to write after I watched it again! Lol, anyways, see you next update!**

**-Wolfie**


	5. Mercy

Chapter 5: Mercy

**--**

**Haha! Another quick update! I rock! **

**Nothing is What it Seems: Thank you! I can't tell you anything about the Jumper without giving stuff away, but... well... Did I update soon enough for you? Ha! I totally avoided answering anything and giving anything away! lol**

**littlelostsecret: Thank you. I love when readers love what they read. Especially when I wrote the thing of which they are reading. lol. I did update soon though. Lucky for you I have nothing better to do.**

**Taisi: Accidents do happen. I always bless those accidents that are wonderful... ha. I've watched the movie twice in three days just to get more of Griffin. Unluckily, I got a whole load of David too. Enough of him... he's always in the spotlight! I'm so glad you like this fanfic! -glomps back-**

**Cube Fangirl: The fight is just coming up! I'm glad you like it. You're lucky too though. Even though you haven't gotten the DVD yet, you get it in a special case. America is cheap. All cardboard and plastic. :D**

**ShadowWolfDagger: Thank you again! Here's the next update, really fast by my standards! Hope you like it!**

**And without further ado... here's Chapter Five!**

**--**

Griffin grinned as the Paladins advanced on him. "Thought so."

The one with the gun pulled the trigger, and he easily dodged the cables with a jump, coming up behind the man and swinging the bat with all of the force he could muster. It contacted the back of his skull with a loud crack and the male went down while his partner spun around, wide eyed. They were obviously newer.

_Why did they go after an older Jumper then, if they're inexperienced?_

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Griffin sidestepped, narrowly dodging a black tube much like the one Mary had used on him earlier. Just the memory of that made him remember David, and remembering David brought back the rage.

For a moment, he was knocked breathless by it, the fierce, hot feeling bubbling in his stomach, and then he let it consume him. Griffin brought the bat back around to the right, hitting the man in the stomach so he doubled over in pain. Panting, Griffin straightened, swinging the bat idly from side to side.

"Did I play well enough for ya?" He snickered, looking down at the Paladin at his feet. His attention was distracted by a whimper at the end of the alley. It was all the Paladin needed.

The Paladin lunged forward, grabbing Griffin around his legs, his head slamming into his left side.

"FUCK!" Griffin had very nearly forgotten about the deep gash that the Paladin from hours before had given him. He hadn't yet properly treated it, only bandaged it with a strip of cloth. The pain that had long since died away to a dull ache that blended in with his other pains flared anew, and the bat clattered to the ground as they fell.

The Paladin pulled out a dagger and attempted to stab him in the abdomen. Griffin reacted quickly enough to catch the man's hand and slam his other elbow into his arm. With a sickening crunch, the Paladin dropped the dagger and cried out in pain. The blade fell harmlessly onto the gravel of the alleyway, and then Griffin snapped his neck.

With a groan, Griffin let his head rest on the ground, closing his eyes and trying to block the pain. The thin scab that had formed on his wound hours before had reopened, and he was bleeding profusely again. With a grunt he roughly pushed the Paladin off of him and stood, brushing himself off and then ripping a piece of the paladin's shirt to bind his wound again. Blood still dripped through the cloth, and he gave up with trying to make it stop bleeding for the moment. He bent and picked up the dagger, wincing as his side stretched, and then walked to the end of the alleyway.

The Jumper wasn't David. Hell, the Jumper wasn't even _male_. What had he been thinking, anyways? Why would David come back here?

With a sigh, wishing that he hadn't even bothered in the first place, he stepped toward the girl.

She whimpered, shying away as he came closer, and he could see her form flickering as she tried vainly to jump.

"Stop it." He snapped, stopping when he was close enough and eyeing the cables with distaste.

"Don't… don't hurt me! I never did anything, I swear… don't kill me!" She whimpered again, her eyes squeezed tightly shut.

Griffin sighed exasperatedly. "I'm not one of them!" He then muttered to himself, "A right lot of good it did me to try and rescue you… Stop trying to jump so I can cut you loose without the bloody current shocking me too!"

She looked at him then, her eyes wide and frightened, though she stopped trying to jump, which was easily discernable by the fact that she stopped becoming half transparent. The electric current slowed down as well, and Griffin managed to cut her free without getting too much more electricity pulsing through him. Hadn't he just been thinking that he had had too much electricity in his system in the past few days?

She dropped to the ground as he cut the last cable, and he glanced down at her before walking over to the two dead Paladins. He jumped them to the Oasis, just to get rid of their bodies before he could dispose of them properly, and also to keep any other Paladins away from his lair. He then jumped back to the alley and looked over to the girl, who was standing up shakily.

She was pretty, with black hair, green eyes, and standing about an inch shorter than his five-foot-seven. Her clothes had been fairly nice before they had gotten the scorch marks they now bore. She was dressed in blue jeans and a purple t-shirt under a hooded sweatshirt that bore the brunt of the damage.

"Oh great! Look at that. You're gonna live! Watch out for Paladins next time love, and you'll live longer. Maybe you should jump a little less in big cities. It helps, trust me." He rolled his eyes before bending down to pick up his baseball bat and starting to examine it.

"You're a Jumper too?" She asked, her eyes wide and her voice shaky.

Griffin looked over at her, an incredulous expression on his face. "Of course I am! Didn't you just see me jump those two dolts away?!"

She sighed. "I'm sorry… I've never met another Jumper before…"

Griffin snorted. "I've heard that one before. Listen girlie, you'd better get out of town quick, because soon enough, this side is going to be swarming with Paladins looking for the Jumper that killed their friends."

"You killed them?" She looked shocked at this, even slightly bewildered.

"Sure I did. They were going to kill _you_, weren't they? And then they would have killed me." He rolled his eyes before turning and abruptly walking off. She followed, stumbling at first, but soon regaining her balance.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm taking my own advice and going home." Griffin said curtly, glancing back at her over his shoulder.

"Where's that?"

"A location I'd rather not reveal." He replied dryly. "Look, love, you really should get out of here. Like I told a Jumper before… Go find a rock, crawl under it, and stay there." There was a hint of venom in his voice as he said this, brought about by the thought of the person he had said it to.

"I—but…" She trailed off, still following him. They were a few blocks down the street now.

"Why are you following me?! Is there some sort of magnet attached to me that attracts inexperienced Jumpers?" The last part was spoken to himself in an irritated mutter as he sped up.

"I don't have anywhere to go!"

He spun on her, stopping her cold with a glare. "My lair isn't a clubhouse, it isn't a hotel, it isn't a shelter for needy homeless females…"

"Lair? Like… a cave?"

Griffin turned away again as he made a frustrated sound in his throat. "Yes, like a cave! Now will you get the bloody hell out of here?! I am not taking you home with me like some begging, starving, homeless mongrel!"

"Well for one thing, I am begging, starving, and homeless, since the Paladins ran me out of my apartment. For another thing, you're injured, and I can bandage you up and—"

"I can bloody well take care of myself." Griffin retorted, though she had reminded him of the blood dripping down his side.

"_And,_ my grandfather always said that if you save something's life, you're responsible for it." She finished smartly, her lips curving into a small smile.

Griffin stopped in his tracks, gritting his teeth. "Fine. Have it your way. But if you so much as—"

"Don't worry, I'm a well behaved pup." She said, her smirk breaking out into a fully fledged grin.

Griffin sighed, rolled his eyes, and then jumped. She stepped into his jumpscar and followed.

"Thank you, so much! Really, I am forever in your debt, and…" She trailed off, glancing around the lair. Griffin was nowhere to be seen. She jumped as a crash sounded behind her, from a smaller section of the cave.

"Damn it! Where the hell did it go?!" Griffin came staggering out of the smaller 'room', his right hand clutching his left side, blood dripping though his fingers, his face drawn and pale. The female's glittering green eyes took all of this in in an instant, and then she was scanning the room for the med kit she could tell that he was looking for.

The room was kind of a mess, from her perspective, cluttered with papers upon papers upon papers, CD's, video tapes, comic books and random weapons or cords. The baseball bat he had been holding just a few moments before was in the center of the room, the end bloodied with the blood of Paladins, and the handle red with his own.

Griffin stumbled over to where his ratty old mattress lay, rifling through the papers on the table next to it. He threw them off in frustration, some of them bearing bloodied fingerprints.

The girl walked slowly over to him, her eyes still scanning the room. They fell on the box underneath the table that he had been rummaging through.

"Is that it?"

"What the bloody hell would you—" His blue eyes followed her gaze and he broke off, stunned. Then he gruffly continued talking. "Well… I guess…" He sighed. "Thanks." With a glare in her general direction, he snatched up the med kit and sat down on his bed.

Griffin pulled his hand and the makeshift bandage away from his side to reveal a very bloody gash five inches long. He grimaced at the sight of it and then reached for the med kit.

His guest snatched it out of his reach and began to pull out the necessary items.

"What in fuck's name are you doing?!" He demanded, obviously in a very bad mood.

"I worked at the hospital for a while, and I was a student at a medical school. I know what I'm doing, I know how to stitch a wound, and I know when a victim needs rest." At this last part, she looked up at him pointedly.

Griffin grumbled incoherently to himself before replying. "I told you I can take care of myself." He snapped as she pulled two latex gloves out of the kit and slipped them on.

"Yes, but you should also know when taking care of yourself isn't as good as someone else taking care of you." She said as she filled a syringe with clear liquid.

"I thought I was supposed to be the responsible one, since I did save your life and all." He said, still snapping slightly, though he seemed to be calming down a bit.

"Lay down." She said, ignoring his comment. Griffin gave her a glare before grudgingly obeying. She cleaned the area of his wound thoroughly before speaking again.

"What's your name?"

"Griffin."

"Got a last name, Griffin?"

Griffin snorted. "O'Connor. Why?"

"I'm just trying to keep you occupied." She looked up at him and smiled before taking up the syringe and injecting the local anesthetic into a clear patch of skin. "How long have you been jumping?"

"Since I was five."

"Did you keep it a secret?"

"No. My parents knew. Everyone I loved knew."

"Knew, or know?"

"Knew."

"What happened?"

"The Paladins happened." He snapped, glaring up at her.

She sighed as she began to sew the jagged tear in his flesh. "I'm sorry." Griffin made an impatient sound in his throat as he looked away.

A gentle tugging sensation ensued, and Griffin looked back down at her work, as if to make sure she was doing it right, before sighing and relaxing his head again.

"How old are you Griffin?"

"Twenty-four. You know, asking me all these questions isn't doing a good job at occupying me, and I don't usually make it a point to tell everyone everything about myself."

"Would you like me to tell you about myself then?"

"No. I am not a bloody priest, alright? Yet everyone I ever meet comes to me with confessions."

She sighed again. "Would you at least like to know my name?"

Griffin shrugged. "It might help. I can't really go around calling you 'girl' or, 'Hey, you! With the face!' Now can I?"

She laughed. "Alright. Fair enough. I'll tell you to save you from such tediousness. My name is Mercy."

Griffin raised an eyebrow and she sighed.

"Alright, alright! My full name is Mercedes Harper. I don't like to be called that though."

"Wait… Mercedes? Like the car? Who the hell would name their child Mercedes?"

"My mom would. She was weird though. I'll give you that much."

"Was."

"Yep. Was."

"Paladins, huh?"

"Yep. When I was eleven. I'm twenty-two now. It was half my life ago."

"Oh." Griffin managed, very easily at that, to look extremely disinterested. Mercy laughed as she tied off the stitches.

"There you go, all finished. I'd let you bandage yourself up, but your hands are all bloody, so I'll have to insist on doing it myself." Griffin grumbled and sat up as she handed him a moist towelette that had come with the first aid kit. He had started to clean off his hands when she began to wrap his side in a clean bandage.

"You have an accent… are you from London?"

"Originally. You have an accent too you know." Griffin replied frostily.

"No I don't." Mercy said, shaking her head. "I think you need to sleep, Griffin."

"You have an American accent, you dolt. From the states, are we?"

"Oh. Yes… actually." She made a face and then tied off the bandage. "There you go. Now you need to get some sleep. I'm going to clean up some of these burns… Hey… where are your… sheets? Blankets? Why do you just have a mattress?" Mercy tilted her head, and her black hair swung over one shoulder.

Griffin looked up at her and grumbled to himself. "It's a long story."

"I have all the time in the world." Mercy hinted, not moving from her position perched at the edge of his bed.

Griffin stared at her for a long moment before rolling over onto his good side, facing the wall. "Goodnight. You can sleep on the couch across the room. I sure as bloody hell hope you don't snore."

--

**And there you have it! An awesome, extra long, uber fast update for you guys! This has to be the longest yet! There's a lot of dialogue too, and a new Jumper! Nothing is What it Seems was right... good job! Kudos to you this time! I don't think that the next update will be as fast, but I will hopefully get it done within a week. Maybe. Possibly. I probably just jinxed myself though.**

**Well, until next time...**

**-Wolfie**


	6. Take Away

Chapter 6: Take Away

**Hello Everyone! Sorry it took a while, but it's a pretty long chapter, so be happy, alright? I'll try to get on the next one soon too, so be patient, and it shall come. Eventually. Now, onto reviews.**

**Nothing is What it Seems: Thank you, thank you, thank you! Compliment after compliment! I always look forward to your reviews. You're so nice to me. - I'm glad that you like Mercy, she's going to be an important character. Hopefully this chapter is long enough for your liking. :**

**Cube Fangirl: Thank you! Griff and Mercy are kinda iffy at the moment, but that's just because Griffin is prickly and adorable like that. Good for you for getting the movie! 3**

**Lovebuggy: Actually, no. I got the "save a life, take responsibility" from a book I read a long time ago. I didn't know what you were talking about until I saw the trailer days later. Heh. I thought that was pretty funny myself. Almost like telepathy. **

**ShadowWolfDagger: Thank you! I'm glad you like Mercy. She's going to be really important.**

**littlelostsecret: Thank you! I love it when Griffin's helpless. It never lasts long, 'cause he's damn stubborn, but it's hilarious. Don't worry, I'll do it again sometime. :**

**unitykinkaid: ZOMYGOD! Yay! Someone agrees that I rock! Wo0t! Thank you. I try so hard. I'm glad you like Mercy as well. It's a good thing that she is so loved.**

**Now, onto the chapter. It's totally long and pwnin'.**

--

Griffin awoke in the 'morning' to pain in his abdomen again. He was starving. Though, that wasn't the only pain he was feeling at the moment. The anesthetic had worn off long ago, and his wounded side throbbed. It was definitely standing out from the rest of his aches and pains today. For a moment he thought he might still have to stitch it, as if he hadn't brought home the stray Jumper girl he had saved, and then he remembered.

With a scowl he rolled onto his back and stared up at his ceiling, riddled with stalactites. As he looked upward, a drop of water formed on the end of one of the stalactites, and a few moments later it dropped, falling onto his face. With a small growl he wiped the cold water off of his nose and sat up, staring at the culprit stalactite. He wondered if he should move his bed, but it didn't seem to be ready to drip again anytime soon. Though it had dripped, and when he had moved into this cave, he hadn't seen a puddle of water where his bed now was. This made him wonder. As his curiosity grew, he jumped out of the cave and onto the island.

Letting out a startled noise he jumped right back to his bed. It was raining outside, a warm tropical rain. In the cool air of the cavern, the water had become much colder than that on the outside. With a shake of his head, confident that his bed wasn't going to get too wet, he stood.

Griffin walked across the room, fingering the bandage. He stepped to the back of the couch and looked down to see Mercy, curled up fast asleep. He stared at her for a few moments with an unfathomable expression on his face before walking around the couch and to the rack that he kept his clothes on. After slipping on a clean pair of pants, socks, and some boots, he picked up a black shirt and debated on how to get it on without hurting himself.

In the end he just made a face and pulled it on, wincing as his side stretched, but managing to not pull any stitches. He grabbed his leather jacket, checked that he had some money with him, and then ran a hand through his hair before preparing to jump again, this time off to a Jack in the Box.

Right before he jumped, Mercy bolted awake, and her gaze fell on him, fully dressed. "Hey! Where are you going?!"

Griffin started, looking over to her with an annoyed expression on his face. "I'm getting food." He replied curtly. As if in agreement, his stomach growled loudly, and Mercy gave him an odd look, in which she tilted her head.

"I'm coming!" She jumped up and staggered over to him, wincing as her stiff muscles stretched.

Griffin gave her a malevolent glare and then jumped. He appeared at the Jack in the Box in San Diego and stepped into the store. Mercy was right behind him. She looked better than she had the night before. More awake, less stressed, cleaned up, though her clothes were still tattered and charred.

He walked up to the counter without acknowledging her existence and ordered breakfast. Luckily Jack in the Box sold breakfast all day, because it was already past noon. He ordered two Breakfast Croissants, a coffee, and hashbrowns, and then looked pointedly to Mercy.

Mercy didn't even blink at his open hostility, though the woman behind the counter did a double take at the glare that Griffin was giving Mercy as she ordered. Mercy had to repeat herself a couple times before her order of a Sausage Egg and Cheese Biscuit meal with hashbrowns and milk got through.

A few minutes later they were sitting down in the far corner of the restaurant, well away from the other customers. Marcy had just finished her hashbrowns when Griffin sighed contentedly. She looked up to see him leaning back, two crumpled paper wrappers in front of him. He sipped his coffee as she stared at him, mouth agape.

He frowned. "What?" Griffin seemed to be in a better mood now that he had eaten, though he was still a little grumpy sounding.

"You just ate all of that… really, really fast."

"No I didn't."

"Yeah, you did. I haven't even started on my sandwich yet."

"Well, then, you eat slowly."

"No I don't. I eat like a normal person."

"Well I'm not a normal person, now am I?"

"You could at least act like it. I mean, it can't be good for you to wolf down food that fast. What if you start to choke?"

Griffin sighed. "I don't like my food cold, alright?"

Mercy laughed. "Bullshit! My food's not cold."

"It's going to be." Griffin said, eyeing her unopened sandwich as if he was debating on eating it before it got cold and went to waste.

Mercy shot him a glare of her own before ripping off the wrapper and taking a bite of her food.

--

They were back at the Lair, Mercy was sitting on the couch watching Griffin play video games. Her expression was thoughtful, and she suddenly spoke up.

"You know, you're quite terrifying when you glare at people. That cashier was shocked."

Griffin glanced up, shrugging, before turning back to his game. He replied as he furiously pounded a button with his thumb, punching sounds coming from the game. "I didn't notice."

Mercy laughed, tearing her gaze away from the game to look over at him. "How could you not notice? I had to repeat myself three times for her to get the picture and understand my order. You had her frozen in fear."

"I didn't notice 'cause I wasn't looking at her. I was staring at you, you know." He didn't take his blue eyes off the game, baring his teeth at a particularly fierce enemy as it started to attack him.

Mercy chuckled. "I know, but you should have noticed. It was hilarious." Griffin shot her a look, frowning, before going back to the game again. "I was just implying that you were quite angry looking this morning."

"I wasn't angry."

"You were irritated though."

"I wasn't— Well… Yeah, I was irritated! I have to take care of you and buy you food and you're going to need new clothes— I'm not a babysitter." He didn't look up, though he was scowling.

Mercy smiled. "No, you're not."

"So you'll go away then?" Griffin looked up, his expression slightly hopeful, but sly at the same time.

"I didn't say that. Actually, I was wondering if I could switch statuses. You know, go from 'burden' to 'partner in crime'." She met his gaze. "I thought I should ask first though, since you'd probably get angry if I didn't."

" 'Partner in crime'?" He paused the game and turned to face her, his expression frighteningly serious. "The last time I had a 'partner' it was a limited run. I was reluctant to begin with. Didn't trust the bastard. But I agreed eventually. You know how it ended?"

Mercy was slightly frightened by his expression, and in a small voice, she asked, "What happened?"

Griffin's expression turned to one of contempt, loathing, though Mercy could tell that he was no longer looking at her. His blue eyes were staring off into space past her, remembering. "I was left in an electric current, trapped in a fucking power line tower in the middle of a war zone in Chechnya. He didn't come back." His blue eyes narrowed, becoming carefully guarded and blank as they came to rest on her again.

Mercy's eyes were wide. "Oh my gosh… How horrible!"

"So, love, sorry to be a disappointment, but I'll have to decline. For now, you're still 'Burden #1', and you'll have to prove otherwise to change status."

As he turned back to his game again and started to play, all Mercy could do was stare blankly at him. A new feeling was stirring in her for him. Pity. _How horrible must it be for someone you trust to betray you like that?_

As she glanced back to the game, she found that she recognized it. With a hint of surprise in her voice, she spoke up again. "Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance on the Play Station 2? Can I play?"

Griffin looked up, startled. "You know this game?"

"A little. I'm not the best, but I played it with my friends a couple times… before _they_ came." Her voice turned bitter, and then she shook her head. "Anyways, can I? We could do multiplayer if you have two controllers."

Flashing her a dubious look, Griffin leaned forward, snatching a dusty PS2 controller off of the shelf below the console. Mercy dusted it off while Griffin set up the game, a bemused smile on his face. They picked their characters and then started the match.

"Alright, I'm going to go easy on you, since I'm really good at this game— hey!" He started to push buttons, but soon the match was over and Mercy was left looking smug.

"How did you do that?! I thought you said you'd only played it a couple times!"

"Well, maybe it was a few more than that… like, ten or twenty." Marcy grinned and Griffin rolled his eyes before restarting. They played again, and Griffin was no longer holding back, but Mercy knew what she was doing, and they were evenly matched. Ten games later, Griffin had only managed to win the tournament six to four. Finally he set down the controller and stood up, stretching. "Good god, you said you weren't the best… Well, obviously you're not, because _I'm_ the best, but geez…" He trailed off, grinning. "You're better than I expected."

"Thanks." Mercy beamed at his praise, and then her smile turned into a frown when Griffin suddenly scowled at her. "What?"

"You're such a liar!"

"No I'm not!"

Griffin wrinkled his nose and then sniffed disdainfully. "I'm gonna get some take away. I know this great shop in London. Want some?" He looked bored as he slipped on his leather jacket.

"Sure. Surprise me."

Griffin rolled his eyes and then jumped away, leaving Mercy to turn off the Play Station. She put the disk away and then leaned back against Griffin's ratty old couch.

He appeared a couple minutes later, holding two plastic bags of food, raindrops sparkling in his hair. He set the bags down on the couch and then walked over to his small fridge.

"What do you want to drink? I have coke, rootbeer, and water."

"Rootbeer please."

Pulling out a bottle of rootbeer for her and a can of coke for himself, he came back over to the couch and slumped onto it next to her. He pulled three flat boxes out of the bag and held one out for her. "This one's for you."

"And the other two?" Mercy laughed. "God, you eat a lot."

Griffin shot her a glare as she took the box, and then passed her a pair of chopsticks. They started to eat, Broccoli Beef and rice for Mercy and Orange chicken and chow mein for Griffin. Griffin gestured toward the remote and spoke through a mouthful of food.

"Hand me that, will you?" He swallowed. "I don't have cable, but I think I put a DVD in and didn't watch it."

Mercy handed him the remote with an amused expression on her face. "Why would you put a movie in and then not watch it?"

Griffin's expression turned annoyed as he snatched the remote from her grasp. "I was going to, and then I got interrupted." He stated bluntly as he turned on the TV to the right channel and then turned on the DVD player.

"How were you interrupted?"

Griffin's expression turned to one of fury and rage. "Remember how I told you about my so-called partner who left me for dead?"

Mercy nodded, too afraid to speak.

"Well, I was about to watch a movie, and then I popped in raging about his girlfriend and how he needed my help. He popped in quite a few times actually, trying to get me to aid him in a foolhardy quest or whatever. Said it would help get Roland out of the picture. Liar. He got away alive, I know that because I checked, but I don't think Roland's dead."

"Who's Roland?"

"A big Paladin. I've been tracking him for years."

"Oh. Okay. What movie were you going to watch?" Mercy asked, hoping that her subject change would work.

Griffin smiled. "I don't remember."

--

**Love! There you go. Mercy and Griffin are getting a little closer... Griffin's still prickly as ever though. 3 Just to let all of you know, Griffin is still the main character. It's all about him. Mercy's just his burden. I needed to add her for plotline purposes. When I started the story, I didn't even know what her name was going to be. -; So, for all of you who love Griffin so much that you can't bear the thought of Mercy taking the spotlight... don't worry. I won't let her. I'm one of those people too. :**

**Till next time!**

**-Wolfie**


	7. Superhero

Chapter 7: Superhero

**Hey all! I'mback again with another update! Sorry it took more than a week. :) I had to go camping. 0.0 Anyways, review replies!**

**Nothing is What it Seems: Yes, Mercy and Griffin have moments. lol. I love randomly laughing at the computer. My family doesn't even ask anymore. I had to have Griffin win, but I had to have Mercy surprise him with her awesomeness too. I hope you like this chapter at least almost as much.**

**ShadowWolfDagger: I'm glad you liked it. The ending was my favorite part as well.**

**littlelostsecret: Yes, Griffin can be considerate. Funny, I know, and there's a considerate moment in this chapter where he ruins it right after with a 'No you can't!' moment. Haha. **

**BlackxValentine: Haha. Yep. I had a conversation like that once. That's where I got the idea for that, 'OMG you eat fast' moment. lol.**

**AtlantisGirll2: Thank you! I'm glad you like it. I made this chapter just for you! Not really, I just like to say stuff like that. This chapter is for everyone. :)**

**GirplunKk: Thank you! I'm glad you like my cooking. :D I'm glad you think Griff's in character. It makes me happy. Here's your treat doggy! Oh, wait, kitty! There are kitty treats too you know. I just advise against catnip. Catnip is bad. -waves finger around, tsking- drugs are not good for little kitties like you! lol.**

**Well, looks like I have some new readers, I hope all of you like my newest chapter!**

**--**

The movie turned out to be Spiderman 2. Mercy had only seen the first one, so it was a new movie for her. Griffin had seen it enough times to be able to recite some of the words.

A quarter of the way through the movie, Griffin spoke through a mouthful of his second box of Chinese food. "Peter's such a prick."

"What?" Mercy asked, laughing.

"He is. I hate him. He could make much better choices in life, and he's a total twit."

Mercy laughed again. "Yeah, he is an uber-nerd."

"I always liked Harry better." Griffin said, sounding quite matter-of-fact. "He's rich, and his dad was the bad guy…"

"And he's better looking too." Mercy piped in before taking another bite of the remains of her chow mein.

Griffin snorted, glancing over to her. "Girls. Only like guys for their looks."

"Not true! Though looks are always a plus." Mercy said after swallowing her mouthful. She grinned and they turned back to the movie.

A little farther into it, it was Mercy who spoke. "You know, it's kinda funny…"

"What?"

"That we're watching a movie about superheroes gifted with super powers…"

Griffin snorted again, setting aside his empty box and taking a swig of his drink before replying. "We're not super heroes."

"We could be."

"Not really."

"Why?"

Griffin glanced over to her. "Because of the Paladins."

"Well, they would be the super villains… without super powers. Like Batman. He doesn't have super powers. Just nifty gadgets."

"Batman's a super hero though."

"You're missing my point."

"No I'm not. We couldn't be super heroes because we'd always be fighting Paladins if we were out in the open like that. We wouldn't have time to save people. We'd always be saving ourselves."

They lapsed into silence for the rest of the movie, and when it ended, Griffin snapped it off before the credits even came on and stood, not even bothering to collect his trash or can.

Griffin began to rifle through some papers strewn across one of the smaller tables that dominated the room. Mercy watched him, resting her chin on the back of the couch, her green eyes intrigued. After cursing a couple of times, throwing down a few papers in crumpled balls, and then tossing a pair of scissors over his shoulder, he held up a slightly wrinkled sheet of paper.

"Aha!"

"What is it?" Mercy asked, sitting up straighter and tilting her head slightly.

Griffin came walking over, a pleased smile on his face. "A superhero." He handed her the paper, which was a sketch of a man sitting on top of a very tall building. Mercy took it with ginger fingers.

"It's beautiful… you drew this?"

"Well, yeah. I don't waste my money buying other people's drawings." Griffin snapped.

"Who is it?"

"It's one of my old friends. He was a jumper, and he liked to save people. Lucky bastard didn't run into many Paladins all too often."

"What happened to him? You seem to be speaking in past tense." Mercy said, looking up with a small smile.

"He tried to jump a building." Griffin said, snatching the paper away and walking back to his table, setting it on top of more papers.

"Tried to jump a building?! Which building? Why?"

Griffin looked slightly taken aback by her questions, as if she should be satisfied with his blunt, short explanation. He answered anyways. "Well, there were these bank robbers, and instead of leaving, they decided to hold hostages. The hostages were taken to a smaller building in the back while the robbers negotiated with the police. He jumped to the building and tried to jump the whole damn building away, and he died."

"Just like that?"

"It was a smaller building, but it was still a pretty big building with at least two or three floors to it."

"Wow…"

"Yeah." Griffin turned away and dropped the paper back onto the table before sitting in an old chair next to the table. He sighed. "I need to get back to work soon…"

"Work? What do you do?"

"I kill Paladins." Griffin stated bluntly, glancing down at her. "I track them, lure them out into the open, and then kill them."

"You do that… as your job?!" Mercy was utterly astounded.

"Well, yeah. They've got money in their pockets that they don't need anymore once they've died. Plus, I get vacation days whenever I want!" He smiled bitterly at this. "I never liked rules and restrictions. I don't have a boss, so I have none."

"But… you… really?" It seemed that Mercy was still not grasping the fact that he killed people and took their pocket change for a living.

"Yeah. Really. Look, it's no big deal, alright? Paladins kill Jumpers, I kill Paladins. I save a lot of lives you know." Griffin said matter-of-factly.

"Are there a lot of us?"

"Jumpers? Sure. Lots. I don't know how many, but I've met quite a few in the past. There are even more Paladins though. They multiply like rabbits."

Mercy laughed. "Wow." She shook her head and then began to clean up the mess they had made with the food.

"What are you doing?" Griffin asked, watching her.

"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm cleaning." Mercy said as she stacked the boxes and then forced them into one of the plastic bags. "Now, where's your garbage can?"

"What garbage can?" Griffin said, looking very bored.

"You don't have a garbage can?"

"No, I don't."

With an exasperated sigh, Mercy jumped away, and then she appeared again, minus the bag of trash.

"Where'd you take it?" Griffin asked, not sounding interested in the least.

"I took it to the trash can just outside the Jack in the Box we went to today. It's like, midnight there."

"Oh! Time for bed." Griffin stood, walked over to his mattress, which still had no sheets or blanket, and plopped down onto it.

"You're going to bed?"

"You know, for a doctor, you don't know much about getting better do you? I'm supposed to sleep a lot when I'm hurt." His voice was teasing, and a small smirk was on his face. "Besides, I've been through enough crap this week. What if I want to go to bed and sleep for the next few days, and I only woke up this morning because I had a nightmare about _you_?"

"Hey! That's not nice!"

"I wasn't trying to be nice, Mercedes."

"Don't call me that. I hate it."

"I know." Griffin reached down to a power strip on the floor and flicked the switch. All of the lights connected to the strip went out, leaving only two, both small and across the room from each other, leaving everything dark and bathed in shadow.

Mercy let out a small sigh. "Well then… good night, I guess." All she got was a grunt in reply.

--

Mercy awoke to something sharp poking her in the stomach. She started into consciousness, grabbed the metal and yanked it out of the hand holding it, her green eyes flicking upward.

Griffin laughed. "I didn't know you were so eager for breakfast."

Mercy looked at the metal object in her hand to find that it was a fork, and she sat up fully, looking around. Something smelled really good. Her eyes came to rest on the table. "Eggs, bacon, and pancakes? Did you make that?"

Griffin snorted. "No. I got it at a Denny's in San Diego."

"You stole it?"

"Oh come on, you make me look bad, being so righteous and goody-goody like that. I'm going to bring the dishes back later today, and I'll leave some money for them too." He looked slightly cross.

"Well… okay. If you're going to give the dishes back…" Her stomach rumbled, and she lurched to her feet and walked over to the table to sit down. Before she started to eat, she cleared a place under the plate, Griffin had just set it right on top of the papers littering the table. Griffin just sat on the back of the couch while eating his, holding the plate in one hand and his fork in another.

Griffin set down the plate on the table, downed the milk, and then put on his leather jacket.

"Where are you going?" Mercy said through one of her last few bites of breakfast.

"I'm going out to… dare I say it… work." Griffin retorted, picking up a crude looking camera off of one of the tables across the room.

Mercy hastily finished the last of her breakfast and then stacked her plate on top of Griffin's. "Can I come?"

Griffin didn't even glance in her direction as he put a new video into the camera. "No. It's too dangerous. Besides, you need training before you start tracking and killing Paladins. And trust me girlie, I had lots of training."

"Will you train me then?"

Griffin looked over to her, almost forgetting about the camera in his hand as he raised an eyebrow, an incredulous expression on his face. "What? Why?"

"I want to fight Paladins too!"

He blinked, and then sighed, looking away. "Maybe, but not today. Just stay here… and find something useful to do… If you can't manage that, just try not to up your 'Burden' status. I'll be back in a few hours." He then jumped away, and Mercy was left in the Lair, alone.

She sighed, picked up a paper off the table at random, and then looked at it. Her face lit up with interest, and she looked around the room, her eyes falling on large, flat, wooden boards all around the room, mostly empty. A small smile lit her face, and she set down the paper before moving over to one of the boards.

--

**There you are! I hope you like it. Griffin had another little gruff considerate moment, but he ruined it by telling Mercy that she couldn't come! D; We're lucky Mercy isn't crying in a corner and cutting herself! Griffin's so mean! Oh well. I love him anyways. And I love how he poked her with a fork to wake her up. Anyway, reviews please! I'll update sometime soon, m'kay?**

**-Wolfie**


	8. Tears

Chapter 8: Tears

**Hey all! I'm so sincerely sorry that it has taken me so horribly long to update. School started, and I was shocked to find that I had no time whatsoever for anything but my amazingly horrendous amount of AP World History homework. Now I'm just making up excuses, but I really do hope you'll forgive me. I know this isn't the longest chapter yet, but I tried, even though I had a headache and it took me three days to complete. I've been working hard to accomplish my goals, you should be angry, but slightly proud. :)**

**Anyways, onto the reviews! I wouldn't be surprised if you've forgotten what you wrote and have to go back and read it to make sense of the replies, but whatever. I'm not going to stop my review replying tradition because I took too long. :)**

**ShadowWolfDagger: So sorry. I took forever to update. And updating soon was the only thing you asked of me… :( … As long as you don't hate me forever I think I'll be okay.**

**AtlantisGirl12: If Griffin wasn't prickly, he wouldn't be Griffin. But they would make a very good team. Which I love. :3 I think you'll like this chapter. :)**

**Nothing is What it Seems: OMG. You never cease to amaze me. I love your extremely long, awesomely nice reviews. Yes! I'm so glad you like Mercy! She's a little odd in this chapter, but maybe we can just blame that on Griffin's insensitivity and maybe a small case of PMS. Possibly. Glad you liked the superhero backstory. I had to add that. A little interesting snippet. :) And I do so love the part where Mercy has to jump to get to a garbage can. I reread it to get back into the writing mode and started cracking up myself. Don't worry, I think you'll find another random laughing moment in here. I did. xD And, I'm not going to give anything away… ok, maybe I will. You're an amazing guesser. Or maybe I'm just too predictable? The real question is, how will Griffin react? Hope you like!**

**anoymous: Hey, your name almost spells anonymous! Or was it supposed to spell anonymous? Anyways, I'm glad you like it, apologetic because it took so long for me to update, and I hope you continue to like it. Welcome to the board of readers. I love all of my readers. :)**

**xXAlexaXx: Thank you so much! I'll be sure to check it out, even though I don't really like David all that much. I like the actor, he's pretty nice to look at, especially when he plays Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars Episode III, but the short hair doesn't really do it for me. I love Jamie Bell though. The actor who plays Griffin. And I love the accent he has. I'm also glad you think Griffin and I PWN. I do too. xD Hope you enjoy this chapter too. **

**Okay! That's it for reviews! I noticed I have a whole lot of new Subscribers, which means a whole lot of new readers! Yay! You don't know how happy this makes me! I actually feel like a horrible person making you all wait for so long, so, I won't stop you any longer. Feel free to read this next chapter! Hope you like it!**

--

Griffin jumped back to the Lair a few hours later. When he arrived, he almost thought that he had mistakenly jumped to the wrong place. But when he saw Mercy, fast asleep on the couch, his couch, he knew he was really, truly, literally seeing what he was seeing. His mind wasn't tricking him.

The Lair was… clean. He barely recognized the place. All of his drawings and sketches were pinned to the boards propped up against the walls, all in their respective groups, and the various DVDs and Video tapes he had taken over the years tracking Paladins were stacked neatly next to the boards. The table was spotless and empty, and the shelves he had around the room were neatly organized. The TV, DVD, VCR, and game consoles were all dusted, and the DVDs, Videos, and games were stacked neatly and organized into their respective groups. There was even a rug covering up some of the bare cement floor. It was a startling change, and Griffin was speechless for a moment, though that didn't last all that long.

"WHAT DID YOU DO?!" He cried in an agonized voice, both of his hands going up to his head and covering his eyes as he dropped the camera he had been carrying. It fell onto the rug with a harmless _thunk_.

Mercy started awake, sitting bolt upright on the couch and looking quite alarmed. When she realized that the source of the noise was Griffin, she looked worried. "You told me to be useful, so I cleaned the place. It was a mess."

"No it wasn't!" He said, almost starting to pull out his hair. "I just bloody moved in here! It was as clean as it ever had been in _years_!"

Mercy looked appalled. "You called that clean?"

Griffin wasn't listening. "I'm not going to be able to find anything…" He said in a despairing voice. "This is going to set me back months…"

Mercy looked like she was trying to be patient now. "It's simple. I just took the organization you had already started to apply to the place, which was very little, I should add, and amplified it. Finished what you started…"

Griffin rushed over to the neat stack of media and games, gesturing frantically at it. "I never started that!"

"Okay, I did that because I was bored."

Griffin let out a pained noise, rushed over to the boards on the walls, and started scanning through the papers, every once and a while reaching out to lift the edge of one up so he could see one that it overlapped. This lasted only for a few seconds.

"You have some dead ones with the living ones, and living with the dead!" He made a frustrated noise then, rushing over to a different section of board and staring at it like his world was about to explode. "And you mixed up the countries! Good bloody Lord, Mercy!" He spun around to face her, his blue eyes still showing shock, his mouth slightly agape. He snapped it closed when his eyes fell on Mercy though.

Tears were brimming at the corners of her green eyes.

He blinked. "No… don't—don't cry, alright? No crying, it's—it's not allowed!" He seemed genuinely alarmed now, all thoughts of his clean Lair forgotten as Mercy started to whimper.

"I only wanted to h-help!" She hiccupped. "Y-you said not to up my b-burden status…"

Griffin was very agitated now. "Don't cry, alright? Stop crying!"

Mercy burst into tears and Griffin made an odd noise in the back of his throat. He looked undecided for a moment before he rushed over to her. "Mercy?! Stop crying, alright?" He tentatively reached out and patted her back.

"Go away!" She yelled, hysterical. "I tried to do something nice for you, and… and…" She hiccupped again.

Griffin looked agonized for a moment. He hated it. Crying. Tears. Anything to do with sensitivity and people and the combination of the two. In truth, if he could live in a world with people as blunt and rude as he was, he wouldn't mind at all. "Fuck!" Mercy sobbed harder. "No, I wasn't talking to you Mercy, I swear—"

"Leave me alone!" She wailed. "You hate it! Maybe I should just leave and go off and die somewhere! You wouldn't care, would you?!"

Griffin was tempted to agree with her. No, he wouldn't care one bit. Inside though, he knew he would feel guilty for the rest of his life if he said so.

"No, Mercy. I don't want you to go off and die somewhere." He said quietly, almost grudgingly, like he knew he was passing up his only chance to get rid of her.

She paused in her sniffling for a second. "What?"

"I said I don't want you to go off and die somewhere!" He retorted. "I would have saved you for nothing!"

Her eyes teared up again.

He hastily continued. "And, it's not all that bad… the… cleanliness…" Griffin said, looking away and shifting uncomfortably.

"Really?" Mercy said, looking hopeful.

Griffin's blue eyes flicked to her for a moment and he cleared his throat and stood up. "Really. Now, come on, stop crying and tell me where you bloody put everything." He said gruffly, shoving his hands in the pockets of his leather jacket.

Mercy jumped up immediately and wiped her eyes on her sleeve. "Okay." She gave him a watery smile. "I'm sorry. I should have asked first."

He stared at her for a moment, an indescribable expression on his face, and then grunted and turned away, walking over to the boards. "How did you organize this?"

Mercy walked over to join him, linking her hands behind her back and rocking on the balls of her feet. "By the dates that were on the pictures."

Griffin sighed. "Where did you put my paper and pens?"

She pointed to one of the boxes on one of the bottom shelves near them and then to a cup filled with pencils and pens on the shelf above it, next to which was the med kit. Griffin blinked, grabbed a piece of paper and a pen and then handed her the writing utensil, ripping the paper in half, and then handing her that too.

She looked up at him expectantly.

"Write 'DEAD' on one piece, and 'ALIVE' on another." He half growled. "If you want it organized, you can do it, since I already know." He rolled his eyes and then walked over to the wall and started pulling off pictures of Paladins one by one. Mercy did as she was told.

"Dead on the left, Alive on the right." Griffin instructed, gesturing with a pushpin. Once he had all of the pictures off, he sat down on the rug with the stack and started leafing through them. He handed them to Mercy, one at a time.

"Dead. Dead. Alive. Alive. Alive. Ha… Dead." Every once and a while, he would take a picture and set it in a pile next to him instead of handing it to her. When he had gone through all of them, and only had the pile next to him left, he stood and gestured impatiently to the box of clear paper on the shelf. "Get a piece of paper and label it Roland. R-O-L-A-N-D."

Mercy hastily obeyed, and they started to put up the pictures of Griffin's biggest obsession together. Where there was a board dedicated to the dead guys, and a board and a half dedicated to people still alive, there were so many pictures and drawings and factoids about Roland that it took up three whole boards.

"Griffin, why do you have so many pictures of this guy?"

Griffin sighed, tilting his head so his neck would pop. "Because I've been after him for ten years."

Her eyes widened. "Ten? Geez, and I thought I was obsessed with hooded sweatshirts. Not that it really matters anymore, but…" She let out a breath. "Wow."

Griffin glared off into space. "Yeah. And you know what?" He paused, his expression darkening further. "He might already be dead."

Mercy paused. "What are you talking about?"

"I told you about the stupid Jumper that left me for dead. Well, he was after Roland too, so he could save his girlfriend. I know he got out alive, because he jumped part of a building, and it worked."

"Like the superhero jumper? Why didn't he die?"

"He didn't jump the whole building." Griffin replied impatiently. "He only jumped _part_ of it. Anyways, I met up with his mother the other day, who happens to be a Paladin herself—"

"A Paladin?! And he's a Jumper?"

"Shh." He snapped. "I told her that David had taken care of Roland, and even though she seemed bloody shocked, it wasn't the Roland bit that surprised her. She already knew about Roland. So, either he's dead because of David, or everyone _thinks_ he's dead because of David."

"His name's David?"

"Well yeah!"

"You never said his name before. I had to clarify."

Griffin stared at her for a moment before sighing and continuing with his work. "I'm going to get him back." He snarled under his breath, quiet enough that Mercy may or may not hear him. "He's going to pay."

He didn't count on Mercy actually catching his words.

"Violence and revenge aren't the answers to the anger you're feeling." She said softly.

Griffin scoffed, looking irritated. "No, they're the questions, and the answers to both are 'yes'." He rolled his eyes. "Really love, there's nothing you can do about it. I'm going to get back at that bastard no matter what you say."

Mercy sighed and shook her head, putting up another picture of Roland.

"Besides, I thought you wanted me to train you to hunt Paladins. That's violent."

"But it's different. They're bad people. David is a Jumper like us."

"You don't even know him. He's too self righteous for his own good, obsessive over his girlfriend, and his mother's a Paladin. Not to mention the fact that he left me stranded in an electric current and didn't even come back to get me."

"Why did he leave you there, anyways?"

Griffin glared off into space. "It's a long story."

"I have all the time in the world." Mercy said softly again, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

Griffin let out a soft sigh, shaking his head. "You're impossible."

--

**There you go! My favorite part was the violence not being the answer. Duh, it's the question. I have one of my Freshmen friends to thank for that. Anyways, have fun pulling out your hair for the next chapter! I'm hoping to get started on it this weekend, which isn't very likely, but then again, I've been known to randomly pull through. So, do a voodoo summoning ritual or something. It's what I do. Works most of the time too. Please Review! -stares at new readers- Until next time!**

**-Wolfie**


	9. Not Ready

Chapter 9: Not Ready

**Wow, I haven't gotten this little reviews since the first chapter! Only two? Oh well, I'll make do with that.**

**ShadowWolfDagger: Thank you! I tried to update soon. It only took me a couple weeks, right? Haha. Well, here you go. Have fun reading!**

**Nothing is What it Seems: Forgive me! Hopefully it won't happen again! Though I probably just jinxed myself… Thank you though. I'm glad you liked it. I worked so hard… I was stressing that maybe his reaction might turn out a little un-Griffin-like, but I think it turned out as good as I could make it, and I can totally imagine him reacting like that, so… yes. I feel accomplished. I just had to add in the part where he can't stand sobbing females. He hates emotion, and crying is the epitome of emotion showing. Heh heh… I always try to add a bit in where someone might laugh, so I'm glad you liked those parts. Not to give anything away, but I'm afraid the plot twist I have coming up might hamper any laughter… nevermind. Griffin is hilarious with just about anything he snidely comments on, so I should be good. :) Oh, and HEY! Only I get Griffin-sicking privileges! –Griffin glares and growls at Wolfie- Haha. Okay, nevermind. No one has Griffin-sicking privileges… sorry. You'll have to sick someone else on me. Maybe Mercy? I hear she's pretty merciless when it comes to torture. (Heh heh… yes, PUN INTENDED.)**

**That's all for the reviews! BE SURE TO CHECK THE AUTHOR NOTE AT THE BOTTOM! I WILL EAT YOU IF YOU DON'T! (and then cry…)**

**--**

Griffin quickly grew used to the clean Lair, and after a couple of days, he actually found that he liked it clean. Mercy was working hard to keep it that way too.

"Griffin! You're such a slob!"

"Damn it, Griffin, how many times do I have to tell you, we have a trash can now!"

"Oh my God, Griffin, what_ is_ this?"

His bad habits were starting to fade away, but it was only to an extent. Under no circumstance would he ever get out of the habit of leaving his games in a messy pile, nor would he bother to throw his coke can in the recycling if he had had a trying day. And there was no way in hell that he would ever, ever, ever remember to make his bed in the morning, especially since he thought it looked better with twisted sheets and rumpled pillows anyways.

A couple more things had changed too, other than the general cleanliness of the place. They'd gotten a cot for Mercy, another set of shelves upon which to put her new clothes, and they'd even gotten a curtain to close off the smaller section of the cave, so they wouldn't have to stare at each other changing or going to the bathroom. They'd fallen into a steady routine; wake up, eat breakfast, figure out Griffin's next job, Griffin goes to work, Mercy cleans/shops/etc, Griffin comes home, they play video games, eat dinner, then go to bed. The days Griffin had nothing to do, or was too lazy to do it, they spent either watching movies, playing video games, or arguing over trifle things that they ended up laughing about later.

But Mercy hadn't given up on being trained in Paladin hunting, no matter how much Griffin tried discouraging her by telling her it was dangerous, scary, and disgusting all at the same time. For a couple of days, it was a battle of stubbornness, who would be more adamant about what they wanted?

Griffin eventually lost. It wasn't that he was less stubborn than she was, they were pretty evenly matched, it was that he had started to see that she was making sense from the beginning, and the more she complained about being bored while he was gone, the more easily he found it to agree with her, especially sense he hated complaining with a passion and just wanted it to stop. So, he gave in, and on the days that he didn't have anything to do, he took her to the Empty Quarter and they practiced.

--

"No Mercy, you've got it all wrong. It's left, right, left, kick. Not left, left, kick, right."

"Jesus! What the hell is all this complicated stuff for, anyways?" Mercy said, panting. It was sunset in the Empty Quarter. The sandy ground was dotted with drops of sweat, and Mercy stood a few yards from Griffin, her hands balled into fists and held in front of her like she was in a boxing match.

Griffin, who had taken off his leather jacket and was sweating almost as much as Mercy, flashed her a crooked grin. "For confusing people, love. Duh."

She shot him a glare and shifted her feet slightly. "Okay. Whatever. We'll do this your way then."

Griffin nodded, and then suddenly wasn't there anymore. Mercy spun around, throwing a punch at Griffin, who had appeared behind her. He caught her fist in his hand. "Good. What next?"

But she had already continued with the attack, her other hand shooting out towards his abdomen. He reacted quickly, blocking the blow. What he didn't expect though, was her foot snaking out, hooking him at the ankle, and yanking. He fell to the ground with a muffled thump, a surprised expression on his features, accidentally dragging Mercy with him, who looked proud of herself.

"That wasn't what I was teaching you!" He said, letting go of her wrist and sitting up.

She brushed her bangs out of her face with a dignified expression on her features. "I improvised."

He shook his head. "Well, if you're going to do that, you need to break the grip first." He said matter-of-factly. "See how I dragged you down with me?"

Mercy rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I know. And breaking a grip is easy peasy."

Griffin looked irritated for a moment. "I never said that."

"No, you said, 'Breaking a grip is cake, love. You should try it sometime.'" She said, mocking his British accent before jumping to her feet. "Come on! I just got an idea. Can we do freeform for a while?"

Griffin sighed and heaved himself to his feet, brushing the sand and dust off him. "Sure, sure." He shook his head, cracked his knuckles, and then jumped.

Mercy jumped too, appearing to the left of where he appeared and then using one of the attacks Griffin taught her, the one in which she jumped to gain force, she slammed her foot into the back of Griffin's knees.

"Fuck!" He started to fall, jumped, and ended up sitting on a rock a few yards away, rubbing the back of his leg. "Jesus, mother of God, Mercy!" He said with an irritated expression on his face. "We are only sparring you know. I'm not a bloody Paladin in disguise."

Mercy giggled. "Sorry."

"You like it when you're opponents are on the ground, I see." He said dryly. "Makes you feel tall, doesn't it?"

"Are you calling me short?" Mercy asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No." He paused. "Maybe." Griffin paused again and looked thoughtful for a moment. "Actually, yes, I think I did just call you short."

Mercy pouted. "You must be looking in a mirror." She said hotly, her green eyes narrowing.

Griffin winced. "Harsh. I know how you feel though. It's nice to look down on someone you hate. Looking up is no fun."

"I don't hate you." Mercy said, looking wounded. Then her expression turned mischievous. "I detest you."

"Ouch."

She laughed. "So what next?"

Griffin's expression turned thoughtful again, for real this time though. "I'm thinking of showing you the joys of blunt objects. You've pretty much mastered basic hand-to-hand combat."

Mercy's expression turned excited. "Great! When do we start?"

Griffin scowled. "Right now, you dolt!" And then he was gone. Mercy sighed and sat down in the sand to wait.

Griffin appeared again a couple minutes later, holding two objects in his hands. He twirled the metal baseball bat he held in his right, the same one he had used to save Mercy from the Paladins only a week ago now, devoid of the blood it had borne earlier in the week. In his other hand, he held a wooden bat, one that Mercy had never seen before.

"What took you so long?" Mercy said irritably. "You'd think with the Lair clean, you would be able to find things better."

Griffin let out a patient sigh. "Look, I had to do some careful choosing, alright? The first blunt weapon you used had to be perfect."

"What was the first blunt weapon you used?"

"A gun."

"But you brought two baseball bats, and guns aren't blunt weapons."

"That's not the point." He said, his brow furrowing. "I didn't want to shoot the bastard; I wanted to beat his face into a pulp, which I did. Plus, I didn't have a bloody baseball bat lying around."

"It seems a little more likely than a gun."

"I didn't play sports, love. Only karate. Besides, when a Paladin is after you, you use whatever you can get your hands on, even if that means punching them in the face and taking their weapon only to continue the job, namely, hitting them in the face with it."

Mercy sighed. "Okay. I understand. Now, can we get on with this or what?" She put her hands on her hips. "Which one do I get to play with?"

"Play? It's not—" He had to stop himself though, halfway through his sentence. Griffin referred to it as 'playing' all the time. He sighed and shook his head. "Alright. You'll start out with wood." He tossed her the bat and she caught it, swinging it and testing its weight. She looked excited, ready to burst with energy.

Griffin dropped the metal bat on the ground. "Ready when you are."

Mercy glanced up, and then jumped. She appeared right next to him, swinging the bat toward his head. He caught it with ease, grinning. "Try harder."

She gritted her teeth, yanked the bat out of his grip, and tried again. Two jumps this time, just to confuse him, appearing first behind, and then in front. She swung the bat, hard, and he jumped out of the way just in time.

"Close." He said, popping his neck. "Again."

Mercy whipped around to face him, growling softly with frustration, her eyes narrowing as she calculated.

She appeared next behind and to the left of him, then on his right, and finally directly behind, swinging again. Griffin spun and caught the wooden bat with both hands. "Nope. You have to get desperate, Mercy!"

She smirked, let go of the bat, and jumped again. He spun around, but she wasn't there either. He switched his handhold on the bat, tapping it against his palm thoughtfully. Where had she gone off to? He glanced around, but for a few seconds, she wasn't anywhere to be found.

Then his calves exploded with pain and were thrown out from under him. "SHIT!" As he fell backwards, Mercy brought the metal bat she had snatched up around to slam down at him once he was on the ground.

The steel hit the soft sand with a twanging thump, and she stood there panting. Griffin was sitting a few yards away from her, muttering curses under his breath.

"Jesus fuck almighty…" He said, rubbing his calves, the wood bat on the ground next to him. "That hurt like bloody hell!" Griffin glared up at her, a look of irritation on his face. "If I hadn't jumped away, you probably would have killed me!"

Mercy's expression was innocent. "Who, me?" She giggled. "I thought I was supposed to be proving to you that I could fight and kill Paladins."

"Well, I suppose I should give you what you want and tell you that you're a natural with blunt objects…" He sneered. "But you're doing bloody awful! You're not supposed to attack allies!"

Mercy rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Am I ready yet?"

Griffin sighed and staggered to his feet, wincing as he did so. "That'll hurt more in the morning…" He muttered before jumping and snatching the bat from her hands and then jumping immediately back to the other bat. "Not yet. You have two more weapon statuses to learn."

"So I passed the blunt objects test?" Mercy said, her face lighting up.

Griffin sighed. "Yes, alright? I said you were a natural, didn't I?" He snapped, glancing at the darkening sky. If they wanted to continue, they would have to set up some landscaping lights so that they could see, and he was beginning to feel sore. Wait, that was an understatement. He was beginning to feel extremely sore. "I think we should call it quits for tonight. I have something to do tomorrow, and I don't want to be completely torn to pieces before then."

"Aw, already?" Mercy whined, glancing up at the first few stars. "We could set up the lights…" At the look Griffin shot her, she gave a soft sigh and admitted that she was getting a little hungry. They jumped back to the Lair to drop off the baseball bats. Griffin then jumped to a London pub he hadn't visited in years, and Mercy followed in his jumpscar.

They enjoyed fish and chips and alcoholic beverages, and then headed back to the Lair to get some sleep.

--

When Griffin woke in the morning, he had to think for a moment why he might be so sore, and then he remembered the particularly vicious training session with Mercy the night before. He groaned and rolled out of bed, clad only in boxer shorts, his calves cramped and viciously tender from the whack with the metal bat previously. They also sported beautiful blotchy green and purple bruises.

He lay on the cold cement floor until he started to get goosebumps, and then struggled to his feet and stumbled over to the 'closet'. After dressing quickly in his usual, dark jeans and a black t-shirt, he yanked his leather jacket off the hook and slipped that on too. When he came back out again, Mercy was awake and sitting up.

"You look like crap." She said, grinning. "Wake up on the wrong side of the bed or something?"

Griffin scowled down at her. "Maybe you're just 'looking in a mirror'."

She winced. "Yeah, probably." She got up and headed into the closet herself, calling out from behind the curtain that closed off the smaller section of the cave from the rest of the Lair. "When are you leaving?"

"As soon as I eat breakfast!" Griffin yelled back irritably. He didn't look up from what he was doing, now sitting at one of the tables in his computer chair and fiddling with a video camera. "Crappy piece of junk." He muttered, finally giving up and tossing it down. "Looks like I need a new camera."

"What's the job this time anyway?" Mercy asked.

"I'm going to be eavesdropping on a couple Paladins in Germany, and then dropping in on one in France." Griffin said with a sigh, pushing back from the table and rubbing his eyes. He was tired, sore, and hungry, not a good mixture. He was trying unsuccessfully not to take it out on Mercy.

"Can I—"

"No, you aren't ready yet." He snapped. "I still haven't taught you bladed weapons or firearms."

Mercy gave a soft sigh. "Okay. I'll go shopping then." She said, stepping out from behind the curtain. In the few moments she'd been back there, she'd brushed her hair, fixed her makeup, and gotten dressed. She now wore a pair of torn blue jeans, black converse, a black studded belt, and a black band t-shirt. Atreyu, one of her favorites.

Griffin glanced up at her, rolling his eyes. "Girls." He muttered, gesturing to a coffee can across the room. "Don't spend too much." He said as he stood and Mercy skipped over to it, removing a fifty dollar bill.

"I won't. San Diego gets a little old shopping-wise anyways. When I decide to hit Paris you can start worrying." She pocketed the money and then smiled. "So, where to?"

"Hmm… I know this café in Borneo that's open late." Griffin said, a small smirk on his lips. They're very tourist oriented, but they should do the trick."

"Do they have waffles?"

"Probably."

--

Hours later, Mercy could be found back on the couch at the Lair, reading a book. _Blood and Chocolate_ by Annette Curtis Klause. Her feet were propped up in front of her, and a few bags from various stores lay near the arm of the couch. She turned the page, her eyes scanning the words.

She was so caught by the book already that she started violently when Griffin appeared suddenly. His jump was so sloppy that a shower of hot sand followed in his wake, and the ground momentarily shook before he collapsed. Mercy jumped up and dropped her book, rushing to his side.

The left sleeve of his leather jacket was in tatters, and blood was dripping onto the cold cement floor. She couldn't tell if the wound was from somewhere on his chest or his arm, because he held his left arm pressed up to his shirt, where a blotchy dark stain was spreading on the black fabric.

"Griffin! What happened?!"

He looked up at her, his blue eyes glazed for a moment before they cleared. "Damn you Mercy!"

She looked shocked. "What?!"

"If you hadn't pummeled my legs last night I would be fine right now!" He sounded irritated, though his eyes sparkled with humor, and he carefully peeled his arm away from his torso to reveal a long, thin, bloody gash trailing from the his wrist to the inside of his elbow. It wasn't very deep, and not nearly as bad as the one on his side, still healing, had been, but it was bleeding enough to be worrisome.

Mercy seemed relieved, and let out a sigh as she stood to retrieve the med kit. "You're not hurt anywhere else?" She asked, not bothering to mask the lingering glance she shot towards his bloodstained shirt when she returned.

He shook his head and then immediately regretted it as it started to pound. "No." He replied hoarsely. "I got the bastard, but it would have been too much trouble to try and fix it up by myself."

"Mmhmm…" Mercy mumbled as she slipped on a pair of latex gloves and set to work. She made him pull off his jacket and then cleaned the wound with alcohol, and Griffin winced. "It needs stitches…" She said with a sigh. "Just barely. If it had been just a fraction lighter, you wouldn't need them." Griffin grunted in response as Mercy prepared the local anesthetic for the second time since they had met. After deftly stitching the wound and then bandaging it, she pushed him away and started to clean the floor with a rag she wetted with a water bottle. She then got out the bleach and thoroughly disinfected the spot while Griffin watched.

"What are you doing that for?"

"Standard procedure. You're supposed to." She replied, glancing up with a grin. "Medical rules."

"Oh." He said, examining the bandages and wondering when his arm would stop tingling.

"Go get on some clean clothes, and throw those away." She instructed, ushering him out of the way as she stood and started to put away the supplies.

Griffin remained still for a moment, watching her work and wondering wryly to himself if he had or would have ever thought to clean up bloodstains with bleach before slipping into the closet.

A couple minutes later, Mercy heard a muffled curse and Griffin came storming out from behind the curtain. He had clean pants on, though he was shirtless as he stalked over to where his leather jacket lay on the ground. He picked it up, examined the sleeve briefly and then dropped it with a scowl, muttering under his breath something that sounded vicious and directed at the dead Paladin who had ruined his still new jacket. He returned to the closet, grabbed his bloody clothes, and dropped them in a pile on top of the leather jacket after emptying the pockets still muttering malevolently to himself.

Mercy dropped the clothes in the trash can and peeled off her latex gloves as Griffin returned again, pulling on a dark blue shirt.

Mercy sighed. "Sorry."

Griffin glanced over to her as he headed over to the wall of Paladins before starting to search for the picture he wanted. "For what?"

"For… you know, attacking your legs."

Griffin rolled his eyes as he snatched a picture off the wall and moved it over to the 'DEAD' section. "I was the one who let you fight me. It's not a big deal anyways. I get shot at and tore up all the time, love. You'll get used to it." He then examined the wall again before moving two of the pictures further up.

She chuckled before sitting down at one of the tables. "I think I've figured that out already."

Griffin shot her a glare before turning to stare at the wall again, his blue gray eyes falling on the section dedicated to Roland. "They were talking about him. I couldn't tell from what they said if the bastard was alive or dead, but they said David's name. The inexperienced dolt is their top priority now."

"Wow." Mercy said, wincing. "I'd hate to be him."

Griffin laughed darkly. "Me too." He paused for a moment thoughtfully and then turned to face her. "I've been thinking Mercy… maybe it's time we upped your status. How do you feel about becoming a 'Potential Partner in Crime'?" He flashed a grin that looked slightly mischievous. "I have one more Paladin to kill for this week's goal, and you've shown yourself… dare I say it, competent."

"Really?!" She asked, perking up. "I thought you said I still had two things to learn!"

"Well, you do, but I think they can wait. Guns are cake, once you get used to the noise. Knives… well, just watch out for them, and you should be fine until I teach you the finer points of counter attacking them…" Griffin's expression turned sly. "Only if you think you're up to it, though."

"Of course!" Mercy exclaimed, jumping up. "When do we leave?!"

Griffin sighed. "Um, it's lunchtime, and I already killed a Paladin today. We're leaving _tomorrow_, Mercy dear."

"Oh."

**--**

**PLEASE READ THIS NOTE!**** : Not because I like it when you listen to me ramble, because it's important, and some of you who might ignore the bold and just read the story might want to participate… and I also have some important news to tell you!**

**FIRST : I am going to create a soundtrack for the story. If any of you have any ideas for songs you might want included in the soundtrack, add that into a review, and I'll love you forever! I feel like my musical genre is a little restricted for some people, since I tend to like rock, metal, alternative and punk. I don't listen to much other than that. Want a country song and think it's really appropriate? I don't like country, but if it applies, I'll add it in. Same with rap. I detest rap, but if you send me a song that really fits, I won't hesitate to add it. Right now I have a list of artists such as Breaking Benjamin and Three Days Grace. If you don't like them, I'm sorry! Just remember, if you send me a song, tell me what part it's for. Like, I have a Breaking Benjamin song that's pretty much perfect for the very beginning. I'm going to title it, OPENING TRACK. Lolz. **

**SECOND : I am very excited to let you know, they now have a Jumper category in the Movies section! I wanted to let you guys know that I am going to move the story into that category ASAP. I also think you should take a look at some of the fanfictions in there if you already haven't. Some of them are really good. (Just not as good as mine. –snickers-)**

**Anyways, thank you for reading, bomb me with reviews PLEASE, and welcome to the new readers I accumulated over the past few days! See you all next update! (Which will hopefully come sooner rather than later…)**

**-Wolfie**


	10. French Toast

Chapter 10: French Toast

**Hey there all! Sorry it took me a while. I was all excited for this chapter and everything, because I thought I was going to make something exciting happen, but then I realized... this chapter is pretty long just leading up to it! So, I have decided with ease that I shall wait for the action until next chapter, because I'm sure that's going to be long enough by itself without all of this tacked on in front of it. **

**Hope you don't hate me too much for it. :)**

**Now, reviews. Huh. I had a reader who never reviewed before... until I asked for song input. :( You should have said something earlier! lolz, just kidding. I'm not mad at you. haha.**

**Saint Milly: Okay, okay, Mercy, I must tell you, does not wear band t-shirts and torn jeans all the time, but it's one of her favorite styles, so get over it. But don't cry. Griffin hates that. :) I'm thinking Mercy is a little everything, maybe. Punk and goth for sure, you haven't seen too much yet, give it time. I don't know how much prep she is though. She can't stand those preppy shiny girls! Haha. Anyways, about your suggestions...**

**Love most of them. Bullet With Butterfly Wings, Got Me Wrong, and Creep are all songs I love, and nearly forgot because I don't have them on my iPod yet. Those were in immediately. The Veruca Salt songs, I can honestly say I have never heard before, but she does seem perfect for Mercy. Don't know what I'll use them for exactly, they are a little odd, but I'll find something. As for the other two songs... I'm sorry. I didn't realize how hard it is to stomach rap for me. I couldn't get through thirty seconds of either of them. Terrible, I know, but the truth. No offense to you or anything. I'm just too inbred to like rock songs...**

**And in case you didn't know, I love essay reviews. You should give me more. :)**

**Nothing is What it Seems: Thank you! I guess, if you find a particularly inspiring song, even if it has no lyrics, that you think goes perfectly for a scene/chapter/etc. I would be happy to hear it and perhaps include it. If it's classical, like I think you're talking about, then I have no problem. I love classical music. :) Thank you for complimenting once more, I'm glad you like the consistency of my reviews. You'll get better at it once you get engrossed in the stories you write, I'm sure. Let me know if you post a Jumper story, I'd love to read it.**

**ShadowWolfDagger: Thank you! Keep reading, like always!**

**AtlantisGirl12: Thank you for the review! Sorry Mercy was getting the better of him. Just think of it like this... he was going easy on her because he thought she wouldn't be good at it at all, and she ended up being a natural. I'm very sure that if Griffin hadn't been holding back, he would have wiped the floor with her. :) As for the language, forgive me, but it is imperative for keeping Griffin in character. I apologize... just... censor the words or something, 'kay? Alright, so the song you suggested, Remember the Name? I listened to it. I think I've heard it before. It's not... too bad... but it's still rap, and debatable... so, we'll see. Thank you for the input though, it means a lot to me, and if you come up with any more songs, be sure to tell me!**

**littlelostsecret: Thank you for the review! I'll be happy to listen to any songs to come.**

**And that's it for the reviews! Have fun reading! Be sure to check the author's note at the bottom too!**

**-----**

That night, they did a crash course on firearms. Using paintball guns of course. It was just like old times… except Griffin was the one that got to shoot the paintball gun at Mercy, instead of his father shooting it at him.

He taught her the basic rule of firearms.

_Never let someone even __point__ a gun at you. _

She was getting pretty good too, and he was having fun painting the Empty Quarter bright green. They wouldn't have time for bladed weapons, and he knew it, but he figured that his earlier advice, "Just watch out" would suffice until he could teach her how to counter them.

Eventually, they fell back on the couch in the Lair, panting and laughing, Mercy cursing him because he'd gotten green paint all over her clothes and in her hair.

"You know, if you take one now, the shower should still be warm." He said, checking his watch. "The sun's going to go down here in about half an hour."

She jumped, leaving him alone on the couch. He stood and started to put the paintball gun away, a small smirk on his face, when he heard an angry growl behind him.

"Liar. It's pitch black out there." Mercy was back already.

"I know that you dolt." Griffin said, snapping the case shut and shoving it back under the table. "I was testing you. You should really learn your time zones, Mercy. If it's dark in San Diego, you're bloody blind out and about where we are." He turned around, a grin lighting his features. "I've got to tell you though, the green streaks suit you. You should keep 'em."

She scowled at him. "No way. If I were to get streaks, they'd be dark blue, or red. Or maybe purple. But green is like snot. Gross."

Griffin snorted. "Wow. I'm never going to let you live this down, you know."

"Live what down?"

"You have snot hair right now."

The scowl on her face deepened. "I'm going to take a shower. A _cold_ shower." She said before sniffing and retrieving a towel from the closet, as well as a pair of her pajamas. "Better hope I don't freeze into a block of ice or something."

"A green popsicle. A green snot popsicle." Griffin suggested, jumping over to the couch and picking up the controller for his Playstation.

"While you play video games… without me."

"Have fun with that. I'll look for you if you don't come back by morning…" Griffin said, already into his game. He inhaled sharply, leaning to the right and pounding on the X button.

"No you won't."

"Nope. I'll come looking for you after I get back." He said, not even looking up as he leaned in the opposite direction and bit his lip. "First mission I invite you to. It's not like I'm going to make sure you come or anything."

Mercy rolled her eyes. "That's real nice, Griff." She shook her head, and then she was gone, off to the solar shower hanging up just outside of the cave.

She came back just when he was starting to wonder if he should go see if she really had frozen into a green block of ice.

"Ugh! That was horrible!"

"Took you long enough." Griffin grunted, not looking up. He was playing the X-Box now, viciously attacking the enemies on screen with a bored air about him.

"I had to wash all of the green gunk out of my hair!" She exclaimed, dropping down onto the couch next to him.

"We'll get red next time, 'kay?" Griffin said dryly, a small smirk on his face again.

"Right. Red. That's much better." She giggled. "I was just kidding though, about it being cold. It was only a little cooler than lukewarm."

He chuckled. "Yep. Then you'll have bloody hair. Headwounds, you know?" Mercy rolled her eyes, and then he turned off the game.

"What, as soon as I get here and start to watch, you stop?"

"I'm going to bed. I've got a big job for me tomorrow, what with coaching you on your first mission and all." He growled, tossing the controller towards the TV.

Mercy sighed and got up, putting the controller back where the designated spot was and tidying his stack of games.

"Yeah, yeah. You just like teasing me."

"Well, that too. But I was also being considerate. I know you don't like walking around in the dark, so I waited."

"Oh."

Griffin stood, stretched, and walked over to his bed, collapsing on it with a small groan. "Don't stay up all night, Mercy." He said before reaching down and flicking the switch to turn off the light.

The cave was suddenly thrown into shadow as all but two small lights turned off.

"Griffin! I thought you were being considerate!" She said, straightening and putting her hands on her hips.

All she got was a soft snore in response. With a gusting sigh, she made her way carefully over to her cot, worried that she might trip over a mess Griffin may have made the whole way.

-----

Mercy was prodded awake by something hard, and instead of opening her eyes to see what it was, she shrank away from it and ended up on the floor, tangled in sheets.

"Ugh!" She growled as she disentangled herself, standing hastily and rubbing her hip before shooting Griffin a glare. "What the hell?!" She then looked excited. "Are we leaving?" She grabbed Griffin's wrist and checked his watch. "Is that why you woke me up so early?"

"No, we're not leaving until later today. They aren't going to be where they're supposed to be until seven-thirty London Time."

"Why did you wake me up at eight thirty then?!"

"Because, that's in three hours, Mercy dear. We go by San Diego time mostly, so it's a lot later there than it is here." He said patiently, tapping the watch with a grin. "Hurry up and get dressed, and we'll go get some food."

"Oh." She said, tilting her head. He could tell she was calculating, finding him to be correct, and then she practically ran to the closet to get dressed and ready to go.

"What should I wear?!" Griffin noted that Mercy sounded almost panicked.

"Bright pink, love. They enjoy that color most."

"What?!"

"It doesn't matter!" He said irritably, shaking his head and jumping over to the couch.

"Yes it does!"

"Then wear something you won't mind getting blood on." He replied dryly as he sat down.

Mercy stuck her head out from behind the curtain. "That is the most morbid thing I've heard all week." She wrinkled her nose. "No, wait, I'd better say all day, but you get the point, right?"

"Did it help?" Griffin asked.

"Well, yeah… now I know what _not_ to wear."

"So shut the bloody hell up and get going already. I'm starved."

Mercy retreated behind the curtain to come out a few minutes later wearing a black t-shirt, the old, torn, stained jeans she had been wearing the night he found her, and a black zip up hoodie.

"Finally. I have to go get a new jacket too, you know. It's cold in London this time of year. Raining and bloody sleeting, I'll tell you." He heaved himself to his feet, rubbed the bandage still on his forearm from the day before, and then sighed. "So, where to?"

She hadn't seemed to hear him. "Are you going to be okay with that arm?"

"Of course I am." He snapped. "I'm not left handed."

"Your handwriting's bad enough that it's possible." She muttered.

"Where to for breakfast?" Griffin growled. "Or I'm going to pick sushi."

"Ugh! I hate sushi!" She shuddered. "I don't know. Somewhere with waffles or French toast."

Griffin snorted, shot her one last glare, and then jumped. Mercy rushed to follow in his jumpscar before it disappeared.

They appeared in a quiet looking town next to a café.

"Where are we?"

"France."

Mercy burst out laughing. "French toast? Wow. I didn't mean literally France."

"I know." Griffin said, a smirk on his face as he pushed his way into the café.

"Bonjour, bienvenue au café, combien en votre partie?" A waiter asked, walking up.

Mercy was just about to reply that they didn't speak French, when Griffin spoke up.

"Deux, merci." He replied, using surprisingly well accented French.

"Suivez-moi." The waiter led them to the back of the café, a table for two in a secluded corner. He placed two menus on the table. "Je serai de retour momentanément pour votre ordre." He said with a slight bow before he retreated.

Mercy watched him go, and then turned to Griffin, an awestruck expression on her face. "I didn't know you knew French!"

"It helps when you want to be seated quickly. They tend to favor people they think are Frenchmen, rather than tourists." He said with a grin.

"Where did you learn?"

Griffin's blue eyes glazed over slightly, and he fell eerily still before shaking himself out of his trance and speaking softly with a small smile. "In Mexico."

Mercy was downright perplexed, but she didn't push it further, instead turning to the menu, which was solely in French. "I can't read any of this." She said despairingly.

"Yeah, this town doesn't get many tourists." He said, leaning forward to point to one line of writing on the menu. "Pain grillé français is French toast. It's a little different than the stuff we get back home. It has fruit instead of syrup for topping."

"Oh. Okay."

The waiter came back just then, bowing slightly again. "Queest-ce que je peux t'obtenir, monsieur?"

"Deux plats de pain grillé français, merci." He said fluidly, glancing up.

"Quel écrimage aimez-vous?"

"Topping?"

"Uh… strawberries?"

Griffin nodded. "Fraises et pommes, svp."

"Boissons?"

Griffin turned to Mercy. "Drinks?"

"Rootbeer." She said, glancing to Griffin and then back to the waiter, fascination plain in her green gaze.

Griffin looked up, pointing first to himself, and then to Mercy. "Kola et bière de racine."

The waiter nodded, glanced quizzically to Mercy, and then walked off.

"Wow."

"Cool, huh? I like other languages. You should learn some, it'll help you out someday."

"I know some Spanish." Mercy said, looking a little offended.

Griffin laughed. "¡Claro que si!"

Mercy shot him a glare. "Oh. Tu demuestre apagado."

"I am not a show off! I learned Spanish in Mexico too! I lived there for a while…" He shook his head to clear his thoughts, and then the waiter brought their drinks. "Merci." He said before looking back to Mercy with a sly grin.

"Thank you?"

Griffin nodded. "I'm going to teach you. French comes in bloody useful sometimes."

"Of course it does…" She muttered, taking a sip of her soda.

"Yes, it does. There are French speaking people everywhere. Sometimes I think they once tried to take over the world, because they've got colonies settled in the most random places…"

"You didn't just learn it in Mexico though, did you? You've got the accent down perfectly… two accents. Geez Griffin."

"I spent some time here with a friend from my karate class. He had an uncle who lived here." Griffin didn't know if that uncle, or even his friend were still alive. They hadn't been jumpers, and he had had to cut connections with them after the Paladins had found him again.

"Karate too?"

"I'm a little out of practice…" Griffin paused at the astounded look he was earning and couldn't hold back a smug smirk. "I was almost a blackbelt, way back when."

"Jesus. Why didn't you tell me this?"

Griffin shrugged, staring off into space. "You never asked, and I don't make a point to tell people about the gory details of my life."

Mercy fell silent for a moment. "So… why are you telling me then?"

Griffin smiled wryly. "I'm kind of stuck with you, love. Besides, you're proving to be a whole lot less trouble than a certain bloody arse I worked with before. The improvement has put me in a fairly good mood."

"Really? I'm that much better than David?"

Griffin snorted. "Well, besides the fact that you totally ruined the Lair with your cleaning, I'd say you make up for it with the fact that you do what I tell you. He never listened to a sodding word I said."

"You are a little… forceful."

Griffin frowned. "Forceful? Just say it Mercy. I know I'm not the nicest person on the face of the planet."

"Definitely not. You're the biggest asshole I know." She smiled softly at this thought.

"Well, at least we're on the same page. I don't like people, you know. You're lucky I'm making an exception with you."

Mercy's eyes lit up. "You like me? Are we friends?"

Griffin's blue eyes focused on her, and a slightly dubious, slightly irritated expression lit his features. "I'd say it more like… I don't detest you, and you're pretty much an acquaintance-slash- possible-partner-in-crime."

"Oh." There was no disguising the way her face fell, even though it was a barely noticeable reaction. "What was David."

Griffin's expression turned purely annoyed. "A nuisance."

Just then, the waiter came bearing their food, and after a brief exchange in French, he left them to eat in peace. Mercy had French toast topped with strawberries, and Griffin had apples with his. They were both hungry from the paintball workout the night before, and finished their food quickly, Griffin of course, faster than Mercy. They paid and then left the café, leaving a generous tip to the waiter. They jumped to a leather shop in San Diego once they were a few blocks away.

It had just opened, and they slipped inside to get Griffin's new leather jacket, which took only a few minutes, because he wasn't too picky. He missed his old-new one, the one that had been trashed only the other day, but his newest one would do for what he would use it for. It had inside pockets, and that was really all that mattered to him, besides the fact that it was black.

They then jumped back to the Lair to waste the last hour of waiting.

Well, Griffin wasn't planning on wasting it. He quizzed Mercy for the whole sixty seven and a half minutes they had to wait until it was time to head to London.

"Biggest rule about firearms."

"Never let them even point one at you."

"Knives?"

"Stay away from them, since I don't know any counter attacks for them."

"And…?"

"Jump whenever necessary. Getting hurt is bad."

"Bad?" Griffin chuckled.

Mercy rolled her eyes. "'Detrimental.'" She quoted with her best attempt at a British accent.

"You'll need to work on that, Mercy dear."

"What, remembering to think of it as detrimental?"

"No, the accent. It was bloody awful."

Mercy rolled her green eyes.

"If worst comes to worst?"

"Jump back to the Lair."

"Only after…"

"Jumping at least three places first. We don't want those Paladins using the machine to follow behind us. We'd have to move the Lair."

"Exactly. I think you passed the test."

"Good." Mercy replied with an exasperated sigh. "How much longer do we have to wait?"

Griffin checked his watch. "Actually, we should probably leave now."

Mercy jumped up with an excited squeal before freezing and looking apologetic at the glare Griffin shot her for her outburst. "Right. Stay quiet. Got it."

"Let's go then." Griffin said, picking up the bats and tossing her the metal one, which she caught with ease.

Griffin jumped next to her suddenly, a grin on his face, placed a hand on her head, and then the Lair was empty.

-----

**Hey there again! Alright, so, I'll give you a couple juicy clues… One of the songs that is definitely going to be on the soundtrack: Simple Design by Breaking Benjamin. It's the opening song, if you listen closely to the lyrics, or even do what I do and read the lyrics while you are listening to the song play, you'll see why. **

**Also, another juicy hint, the next chapter is going to be AMAZING! Haha. No hint there, but whatever. Enjoy. I might actually give you a clue to what is to come someday. Today I just gave you a clue as to the type of music I usually listen to, which will make up a lot of the soundtrack. You knew the beginning… so nothing really new there. **

**I love you all!**

**-Wolfie**


	11. Breathless

Chapter 11: Breathless

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**Oh. My. God. I fail epic-ly. I know. Hate me. I give you permission to sick Griffin on me or jump me and beat me to a pulp in some alley. I took forever. SO SORRY! Onto reviews quick, so you can get onto the chapter…**

**AtlantisGirl12: Thank you! I'm so sorry it took so long. Please forgive me. I hope it ends up being worth the wait. I love this chapter. Haha.**

**Nothing is What it Seems: Thank you, thank you, thank you! I love doing dialogue between characters, especially those two. I'm going to get more chances for other people coming up, but I'm not going to reveal anything just yet. I'm so sorry it took so long. I've been busy. You might get a little bit of story about Alejandra. I need to figure out how to incorporate that in… but I'm pretty sure I was planning to do that anyway. **

**ShadowWolfDagger: Sorry love. I fail at quick updates. Hope you enjoy this chapter. I know it took long enough, it'd better be good. **

**Rebell: Yay! A new reviewer! I'm glad you like it so far. His British accent is just so irresistible, you know. And David definitely deserves a good butt-kicking. I see you've quoted a little bit of Griffin's dialogue in one of your reviews. Lol. I'm so glad you like it. I tried to keep in character with him… Griffin deserves many glomps and fangirls drooling over him. He's unhappy to know that I am one of those people. Haha. Sorry the update took so long. I tell myself to do it faster and it hardly ever happens. Hope you like this chapter. **

**FlyingHampsterofDoom: Thank you! Another new reviewer! Wow, when you wait a long time to update, new people glomp you! Hope you enjoy this chapter. Sorry it took so long.**

**Mad-dog-13: Thank you! I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

**ConstantWriter: You're right, I do need to add David in. Gimme a couple chapters, m'kay? I've got him planned in soon enough. As for a disclaimer… oops. Haha. I'll get right on that. Thank you for the wonderful review, and I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

**Secretmystery: Thank you! And yes, Griffin does = hottness. Sorry about the cliffys. I lurve them. **

**YagamiNeko: I'm glad I have yet another new reviewer! Thank you so much! Griffin doesn't believe in danger and throwing scissors over his shoulder? Bah, piece of cake. Paladins are sissies; of course they would love the color pink! Hope you enjoy. **

**And finally, chapter eleven!**

**-----**

They appeared on the west side of Regent's Park, near the end of Baker street. The alley that they had jumped to was dark and damp, and right across the street from the local pub where the two Paladins they were hunting were supposed to be. Griffin cautiously led the way to the mouth of the alley, shifting his grip on his bat as they stepped onto the sidewalk.

"Any second now…" He muttered, blue eyes flicking around. London was so familiar to him. He'd grown up here for the first five years of his life, until his first jump, and then his parents had whisked him away to America. Years later he'd taken up karate lessons again, in a dojo a few miles south of Regent's Park, and he'd made a friend before having to break off ties. It was quite depressing, really.

He and Mercy tightened their grips on the bats, Griffin's wood and Mercy's metal. They only had to wait a heartbeat longer before the front of the bar exploded in a flurry of motion. One innocent bystander was thrown to the ground as two men leapt over him and started pelting towards Mercy and Griffin, dodging a car as they crossed the street.

Griffin twitched back a step. Something wasn't right. Something was very wrong, and he could sense it. He glanced to the right, just in time.

"Get down!" He yelled, dragging Mercy to the ground as cables shot by overhead and embedded themselves into the corner of the building that made up one side of the alley. Within one breath, Griffin had them both up and halfway down the block.

"What just happened?!"

"Backup, that's all. Only five Paladins, we can take those bloody arses." He grinned sickly and sank into a ready crouch, facing the five men running full tilt towards them. He was tense with excitement, trembling with an adrenaline rush.

"_All five?!_" Mercy asked hysterically, backing up a few steps.

"Sure, I've taken ten at a time and won. It's not that… hard. Crap." Griffin spun on his heels and grabbed Mercy by the wrist. "Run Mercy." They took off down the street at a breakneck pace, which was swarming with at least two dozen Paladins. Griffin had jumped here too much. They must have seen him, realized who he was, and set a trap. And with Mercy, inexperienced and new at the whole Paladin Hunter deal, he wasn't going to take any unnecessary risks.

"Why aren't we jumping, Griffin?!"

"Did you listen to a single bloody thing I said?! _Think_ Mercy! Boxes! Teleportation! Jumpscars!"

"Oh _shit_!" She said, remembering some of the things she had learned from him through her panic.

"Exactly."

Mercy gave a small scream as Paladins cut them off. Griffin deftly jumped the two of them a few yards past the blockade as some of the ECG's went off, and a few of the Paladins that had been tailing them screamed and yelled in pain. An evil smirk adorned his face as he turned a corner onto a different street and then again, into an alley. He cursed colorfully under his breath as he saw the dead end ahead of them. He then dragged Mercy with him to the darkest corner and stepped in front of her, pinning her there with his back to the opening. He felt so vulnerable, exposing his back like that, but his idea was their only chance to save themselves from jumping and gathering attention.

"What are you doing?!" She hissed, green eyes wide and panicked.

"Shh!" He growled back. "Don't move!"

"I am not—"

"Shut up!" He clapped a hand over her mouth as Paladins thundered past the mouth of the alley, some limping or clutching arms. A few stopped at the mouth of the alley, peering into the darkness.

Griffin mouthed silently the words, "Don't move," and Mercy nodded, wide eyed. They both stood completely still and tense, barely daring to breathe.

The Paladins moved on, unable to see anything of them in the darkest corner of the alley, and Griffin visibly relaxed. He glanced to Mercy as she spoke, sounding disbelieving.

"How the hell did they not see us?"

"Black leather jacket and dark pants plus shadowy corner equals invisibility." Griffin said matter-of-factly. "I learned that on one of my jobs in Berlin."

He backtracked to the alley opening and peeked out.

"Griffin, what are we going to do?"

He sank back into the alley and turned to face her, a small, tired smile on his face. It was really dark outside now, and the only reason she could see it was because he was facing the streetlight. "We're going to take a train."

"What?"

"We'll jump once we're a few miles away. Of course, that means finding an underground station first."

"Underground?"

"London subway, love. Keep up with me and stop acting so clueless-American." He said impatiently, waving a hand. "We're near Regent's Park, there's a station there, and they have trains that leave every five minutes. We'll have to walk the few blocks there, but it shouldn't take too long and it's not far at all."

Mercy nodded, and watched as Griffin peeked out the alley again. He was about to take a step before he dodged back in with a curse. He was becoming increasingly foul-mouthed tonight, Mercy noticed.

"What is it?" She asked warily.

"They're doubling back, doing a grid search. We can't head back the way we came because there are wounded but armed Paladins back there, I don't know how many, and even more perfectly functional Paladins the way we're supposed to be going." He was looking desperate. "We'll have to jump. At least ten different places, and we can't go together because that will leave a bigger jumpscar… unless…" There was a wild light in his eyes as he suddenly started pulling off her jacket. His motions were frantic, and he yanked it off within seconds.

"Griffin, what are you—"

He cut her off with a manic, "Shh!", and then took his own jacket off.

"What the hell are you doing?!"

Griffin grabbed her shoulders, looking her squarely in the face. "Trust me."

"I trust you, but I don't see—"

She was cut off abruptly as he kissed her, and she tensed and backed up into the wall of the alley. The kiss grew more intense, and she could taste his panic. Her heart thudded and skipped in her chest, and even though she knew it was stupid and she was utterly bewildered, she started to kiss him back.

"Ugh. Teenagers."

"That's not—?"

"Can't be. He wasn't wearing that."

Mercy could barely hear footsteps over the pounding of her heart and her own ragged breathing. A small warning bell rang in the back of her mind. They were probably bargoers walking home from the pub. The other bargoers, the Paladins, would be there any second, and what the hell was she doing? Making out with Griffin of course. She reluctantly started to push Griffin away, and he broke off abruptly, panting. He glanced to the mouth of the alley, a wild light in his eyes.

Mercy was left leaning against the wall for support, wondering what had brought that on so suddenly, and wondering if he would kiss her again if they got out of this hellhole alive.

Griffin turned, saw her expression, and laughed breathlessly, picking up her jacket and handing it to her, picking up his at the same time.

She took it and watched as he pulled his on, her brows creasing in a frown. "What's so funny?" She asked, sliding her arm into one sleeve.

"Just you." He said, stepping watchfully out of the opening of the alley.

She followed him, glancing guardedly around the corner of the wall to see the receding backs of Paladins.

"And them." Griffin said with a dark chuckle.

As something clicked in Mercy's mind, and hurt, reproach, and outright fury started to build in her chest.

How could he use her like that? She realized now why he had kissed her. They hadn't looked like Griffin and Mercy, notorious Jumpers-slash-Paladin-Hunters. They'd looked like a couple of drunk teens making out. He had on a white shirt under his leather jacket, and he'd taken both of their jackets off. For a moment, she'd actually thought she'd felt something. She'd started to think that she was beginning to really like him.

Of course, Griffin didn't know that, but he should have warned her first, so she would have known he was acting. So she could have been wary of it and not gotten caught up in her emotions. She would have been prepared and not been fooled.

"Now's our chance, while their backs are turned. We can make a break for it and—Mercy?"

Mercy was frozen in place, her thoughts in turmoil, and a sour expression crossing her face as she stared at the group of Paladins.

"Mercy, we have to go." Griffin said urgently. "Mercy, love, what's wrong?!"

She slowly turned to him, emerald eyes hardening.

"Oh crap. Not now, Mercy. Please not now. Hate me later, okay? Please…" His eyes flicked to the Paladins, panicked. They were about to come back for another sweep.

"There!"

Griffin took a step toward her, and she took a step back, into the wall of the alley and further from the approaching Paladins. Griffin's back was once again to them. He came up next to her and she retreated further into the alley, glaring at him reproachfully. His side was now exposed to the Paladins.

"Mercy," He pleaded. "Come on. We have to move!"

But it was already too late. The mouth of the alley was blocked off by a line of Paladins.

Griffin reacted quickly, pushing Mercy out of the way as a cable came flying at her. She fell to the ground with a small yelp, and the cables hit Griffin clean across the chest.

His shoulder and back slammed into the wall, the brackets puncturing the brick with ease and drawing the cables tight. He made a pained snarling sound as the electric current coursed through him, and he writhed in pain. Then he fell limp, panting heavily and shining with sweat.

"Griffin?" Mercy asked, sounding small and lost.

Still panting raggedly, Griffin looked up. "Go, Mercy." He rasped as the Paladin reloaded. His eyes flashed to the gun and then back to her. "Mercy, go!"

"N-no, Griffin, I can't leave y—"

"I SAID FUCKING GO!" He bellowed before twisting in pain again as another current flowed through him.

Mercy flinched away, disappearing right as a cable was shot at her. It hit the ground and slid away towards the dead end alley.

_Dead end._ Griffin thought. _Exactly. _

-----

Mercy jumped to as many places as she could remember from her old life. The park where she'd once walked her dog. The elementary school. Her old house. Her parent's house. Janet's house. Tyler's house. Her old apartment.

She stopped when she reached the forest by the second town she'd lived in, falling to her knees in a field of redwood trees and ferns. This had been her refuge. Her escape.

She choked back a sob. How could she have left him like that? Even if he was an asshole… he was her friend. The person she was beginning to think she'd maybe… possibly… fallen head over heels for. He'd get away. He had to. She knew it. With that thought in mind, she jumped back to the lair to wait.

-----

Griffin watched as they went through the procedure of opening a wormhole using the machine. Way too many Paladins to count went through, and he glimpsed at least two more machines. They'd brought the whole fucking cavalry. Why?

Griffin hoped beyond hope that she'd jumped more than three times. He didn't know why. It wouldn't help any.

It was thirteen and a half excruciatingly painful minutes of waiting. He knew because he counted the seconds. They were just ignoring him, focusing on getting her and leaving the trapped one for later. Then he heard a curse.

"Damn! Are you sure she's not there?!" More cursing ensued, and then Griffin glimpsed the last person on the planet he wanted to see in the vulnerable position he was in.

A snarl built in his throat as he tensed visibly, flickering slightly before he was shocked. And still there, still stuck. His blue gaze held one emotion. Not fear, nor regret. Nothing but pure, undiluted hatred.

"Griffin O'Connor."

"Roland."

-----

**And there you have it! Amazing, suspenseful, cliff-hanger-y… I'm sorry it took me so long guys. I really hope you liked it. I can now give you another clue as to what shall be on the soundtrack. Believe by the Bravery shall be one of the songs. Try to guess who and what it's for. Plus, I'm still accepting soundtrack songs. I will be until I finish this fanfic, don't hesitate to send me a suggestion.**

**Meanwhile, I shall be working on the next chapter, which shall hopefully be up sooner, rather than later! Please review! I lurve them, and they motivate me. **

**-Wolfie**


	12. Interrogate

Chapter 12: Interrogate

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**Hey, I did pretty good this time, updating so fast! Don't you love me? Well, after this chapter you might not, but I'm not going to tell you any more on that matter. I'm just going to get on with reviews so we can get going onto the actual story.**

**ShadowWolfDagger: Well, you never know what Griffin's going to get himself into next. Haha. Hope you like this chapter. I actually updated soon. Yay!**

**YagamiNeko: Thank you. I don't know what to tell you without giving anything away, so I'm going to complete this review reply with an 'I hope you enjoy this chapter.' Lolz. **

**Secret-mystery: Yes, Mercy is quite clueless. I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter.**

**Nothing is What it Seems: Oh geez. I'm sorry! Lol. I'm so glad you were happy to see a new chapter from me. I did kinda make it a horrible ending. I made sure to update fast! I tried so hard to find time to get it going. I actually had it all written down on paper just waiting to be typed. And thanks for the wealth of compliments. I didn't keep you waiting too long, did I? You're probably going to hate me at the end of this chapter too, but if it helps, I have it all written out on paper up to chapter fifteen, so all I have to do is type it up.**

**EnigmaticSevens: Why thank you. I'm glad I've found another fan. Whether you're a fan of me or Griffin… eh, either is good. I'm so glad you enjoy my fanfic, and I hope that you like this next chapter.**

**AtlantisGirl12: I'm glad you liked it. For a cliffhanger, I think I did well. Here's your next installment, and I hope you like it!**

**Without further ado, chapter twelve!**

**-----**

The room was cold and dark, and slightly damp from the rain that had been falling almost incessantly since three days before. A lone figure sat curled up on an old, ratty mattress that had seen better days in the corner of the room. She was wrapped in the blankets that smelled like him, wearing the leather jacket with the torn and bloody sleeve that represented him in her mind.

Mercy had been waiting for Griffin to come back for a day and a half. Her long, black hair was pulled out of her green eyes in a sloppy bun, exposing her gaunt, tired face and dark, bruise-like rings under her eyes. Every once and a while she would doze off, only to start awake when she thought she saw a flicker of movement from the corner of her eye. She found nothing had changed in the Lair every time, though. She was still alone waiting. No matter how much she didn't want to admit it, a small part of her knew. It was the rational voice in her head that told her. If he was going to come back, he would have been there by now. He wasn't coming back.

He was probably dead already.

When that thought fully hit her, the tears came.

-----

Griffin was far from dead, though. He almost wished he was, but quelled the depressing suicidal thoughts with one very powerful one. It would be exactly what they wanted. Him dead. Of course they had to want something else from him, otherwise he wouldn't be alive, trapped in their clutches. They obviously thought there was something he knew that they could use. And, to tell the truth, there probably was.

The Paladins had drugged and blindfolded him, and then shipped him off God-knows-where to some base of theirs. Time had meant nothing then, and he knew he could still be in London, or he could be hundreds of miles away. There was no real way to tell.

So, there he was, in some Paladin base, somewhere in Europe, he supposed, strapped to a table in a bright white room. The table was the most prominent feature in the room, and it was the kind that was metal and high-tech, with a control panel that tilted the whole thing. Currently, he was tilted so that he was almost perpendicular to the floor, though he was still a little leaned back from what would be standing up. He would have jumped away, had he been able to, but the Paladins were smarter than that. If they caught something and wanted to keep them alive, they kept them alive and nothing escaped. If he made too large of a movement or tried to jump, the table electrocuted him, which he found out the hard way. These shocks made the ECGs seem like pinches compared to a punch in the guts with brass knuckles on.

The rest of the room was quite boring. He was hooked up to a heart and breathing monitor that stood quite close to the table on his right. The door to the room was heavy and steel, and quite far away from him on his left. By his feet was the control panel for the table, and he could barely see a few buttons on it, but it was angled away from him. Nearby was a stainless steel table, which was completely empty.

And so, Griffin spent his time suspended, waiting, listening to the steady beep of his heartbeat on the monitor and remaining perfectly still. There was nothing for him to do but get lost in his own thoughts. He knew what they were going to do. Leave him sitting for hours on end, let him wish for freedom, company, death. And then they'd come to torture and question him and offer him freedom if he complied. If he did, they'd kill him because they'd have no use for him anymore. If he didn't, they would keep him alive, in a personal hell, for longer and he'd die eventually when they got tired of trying to get an answer out of him.

Griffin wasn't thinking of any of that. Of course it was all in the back of his mind, but his thoughts strayed to other things. He didn't want to die; he had too much left to do. He had to beat up David for leaving him in a tower. Though it seemed almost trifle now, in the position that he was in. He had to kill Roland. Though, at the man's mercy, like he was, he had little hope of that. Mercy. She was another thing that was on his mind. He had no clue as to what he was going to do about her if he ever got out of here. He figured it would be best to apologize. The expression on her face had been murderous; he'd never seen anything quite like it. She hadn't enjoyed getting used. But the real question was, was he really sorry? He found that he couldn't bring himself to regret it. Kissing her had been… well, more than a little interesting. He didn't really want to think about what that might mean in his head, but it was hard to control his thoughts for too long, and he was stuck waiting for a long while.

The heavy metal door slamming open interrupted his thoughts, footsteps heralding someone's intrusion into his prison. Griffin was shaken out of his thoughts, but remained staring off into space, almost enraptured by nothing in particular. He resisted the urge to look at his visitor, and his thoughts almost started to wander dreamily again.

"Intriguing. Aren't you curious to see who your captor is?"

The voice definitely didn't belong to Roland, that was for sure. It had a prominent French accent and a light lilting quality to it, and the voice was not nearly as deep as Griffin's arch nemesis.

Griffin's expression remained spacey and bored a he turned to look at the male. Nonchalance was key; looking too interested or desperate would make him seem weak. "Why the hell would I be curious?" His British accent seemed rough in comparison to the male's. In fact, everything about Griffin was when contrasted to him.

This Paladin was one he had never seen before, standing much taller than Griffin's measly 5' 7" at a good six feet, finely boned and slight of frame while Griffin was stocky and well built. He had very blond hair and pale green eyes. He was clean shaven and his hair was neatly swept out of his face, and compared to Griffin's unkempt hair and dirty, grimy appearance, he looked like an angel descended.

"Now, now. There's no need for hostility." He said smoothly, baring perfect, white teeth in a smile that reminded Griffin very much of an 'I've-got-you-now' snarl.

Griffin gave a dark, wicked smirk and proceeded to colorfully and fluently cuss him out in French, his own accent still markedly gravelly when pitted against the Paladin's.

The male pursed his lips and _tsked_ lightly. "Feisty."

"Let me loose and I'll show you how bloody 'feisty' I can be."

"I'm afraid I can not do that, Mr. O'Connor."

Griffin resisted the urge to shrug and instead turned his words into a hateful sneer. "Well, it was worth a try. So, what have to come to torture out of me today?"

"Torture? That is quite an unpleasant way of putting it. I prefer the term, 'interrogate'."

"And yet, 'interrogation' implies force."

"If you answer my questions, force will not be needed. We can let you go and focus on Roland's primary target." His pale green eyes glittered.

"Which happens to be David, right?" Griffin let out a bark of laughter, though he was careful to remain still. "And you mean 'let me go' as in kill me, rather than free to walk, right?"

The male chuckled, an icy sound devoid of any of the good emotions that should have accompanied it. "Well, since you've obviously figured us out, I suppose using force would be wise."

"You're not going to get anything out of me that I don't want to tell you." Griffin said boredly.

"We shall see. Pretty soon, you might be begging for death."

"I don't cave in so easily." Griffin snarled.

"Ah, Mr. O'Connor, you shall find me a very obdurate man. I believe we shall see what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object."

Griffin smirked. "So try me. Get it bloody over with." He knew it wasn't the most intelligent thing, egging on his captor, but he wasn't about to let his pride be wounded.

"Well, since you are so eager, I suppose I can give you that wish. We shall begin with one simple question, and since you obviously know him, I expect a legitimate answer. Where is David Rice?"

Griffin laughed darkly. "Why the bloody hell would I know?"

"Please answer the question, Mr. O'Connor. Where is David?" His voice remained smooth and calm, completely emotionless.

Griffin's laughter escalated, but he was interrupted by an electric current pulsing through him. He wondered if it was just the fact that it had caught him by surprise that made it hurt so much, even worse than before, but then he realized that the Paladin had manually shocked him by pressing a button on the control panel. Griffin strained against his bonds, snarling and cursing like a madman, before the charge abruptly ended and he fell limp, panting and gasping for breath, sweat beading on his forehead. The heart monitor had sped up, but he would have known without it how his heart was acting because it was pounding against his ribcage.

"Contemplate answering now, Mr. O'Connor." He said in a cool, collected voice.

"I don't know where he is." Griffin replied, gasping and writing in pain as the table shocked him again. When he had fallen still once more, he looked up at the male and glared hatefully at him. He found the blond staring at him, raising an eyebrow in a silent question. "I don't know."

The process repeated countless times, with the Frenchman repeating and rephrasing the question only to receive the same answer over and over and over again. Griffin took each body battering electric shock until he was nearly to the point of being numb. He was hanging limply once more, taking deep, ragged breaths, when the door opened again. He almost thought for a moment that his tormentor had left, but then he heard a voice he recognized as the man he hated most in the world. Griffin's head snapped up with an animalistic snarl.

"What the hell is taking so long?!"

"Sir, you are interrupting a very important interrogation. I would advise—"

"I would advise you, Mr. LeFain, to stand down while I take over this 'interrogation'."

The blond closed his mouth with a click, pale green eyes hardening. "Of course, Mr. Roland." He said in a clipped tone before stepping to the side. Griffin recognized the male's name, and his reputation clicked in his head. LeFain was almost as high of a rank as Roland in the Paladins' hierarchy.

Roland stepped up to the control panel and started fiddling with a knob.

"What are you doing?" LeFain asked quietly.

"What does it look like I am doing? I'm turning it up." Roland growled, not even glancing at his comrade.

Griffin just stared at them bleakly. _Turning it up?! He has to be kidding…_ Griffin comforted himself with the fact that he was at least starting to go numb and it couldn't hurt so much… could it?

Roland looked up at Griffin, a sick grin on his face. "Where is David Rice?"

All of the defiance that had slowly slipped away during LeFain's interrogation to be replaced by a bitter, dead beat expression came back in an instant. "Just like I told your friend. I. Don't. Know." His tone was acid-like, and he made a point to enunciate clearly.

Roland's grin faded into a scowl in an instant. He pushed the button and caused the table to fire off.

If Griffin had thought that the numbness would ease the pain, he had been wrong. This was like nothing he had ever experienced before, the tingling in his arms and legs was replaced by a white-hot fire. He writhed and twisted in the agony of it, a snarl-like cry of pain escaping from his throat. Black and white dots clouded his vision, and he vaguely heard the heart monitor skip a beat before sputtering onward at an uneven pace like it was an old car about to die.

Griffin fell limp, twitching and gasping.

"Roland, his heart is going to give out if you d—"

"Try again."

"I don't—" He wasn't even allowed to finish his sentence before he was twisting and flickering against the current as he tried vainly to escape. The pain hit a peak and, his heart thumped, stopped painfully, and then continued beating. His cry of pain was louder, and then formed into words. "_I don't know, I don't know, I don't fucking know!_" He sagged against the table, blinking sweat out of his eyes as the shocking stopped. "I don't know. If I knew, he would already be dead."

Roland was about to push the button again, but LeFain stopped him. "Wait, Mr. Roland. Let him finish. Go on, Griffin."

His name sounded odd, coming out of LeFain's mouth, and Griffin bared his teeth in a scowl as his breathing slowly calmed. He leaned his head back against the table, shuddering, as he closed his eyes.

Roland tried to push the button again, but LeFain grabbed his hand.

"You are way out of line, LeFain, challenging a superior."

"Shut up, asshole." Griffin snarled, not opening his eyes. "I'm trying to fucking breathe here."

"He doesn't have an answer for us!" Roland roared. "He's buying himself time!"

LeFain glanced to Griffin. "Maybe you're right, but I think he's telling the truth. He doesn't know where David is."

"I am telling the truth. I don't know where he is. If I had known, I would have tracked him down myself and killed him. I hate him. He's a bloody traitor and an asshole, and the last time I saw him, he was jumping away, leaving me in a bloody electrical tower in Chechnya." Griffin said flatly, sounding utterly defeated. "I really wouldn't mind telling you where he is, if I knew."

The two Paladins had fallen silent, watching him.

"Well, that's no help at all." Le Fain said with a small frown.

"What do you want that dolt for anyway? He doesn't know what he's doing, he has no experience as a Jumper at all, and from the looks of it, he doesn't kill Paladins, 'cause you're still alive." He said, directing the question at Roland.

"Personal reasons." Roland said coldly. "He left me in a cave in the Grand Canyon."

"Sucks, being stranded like that, doesn't it?" Griffin opened his eyes and rolled them dramatically. "Bloody arse should have killed you when he had the chance. Good thing he didn't though, 'cause when I get out of here, you're still going to be on the top of my list."

"You aren't going to get out of here, Griffin. I know you've been waiting for a chance at me for years, but you're going to have to accept your failure and die like a man, even though you're a good-for-nothing Jumper." Roland started to pull out his knife, but once again, strangely enough, LeFain became Griffin's savior.

"Don't kill him yet."

"Why not?" Roland's voice was deathly threatening.

"There was a girl with him."

"No." Griffin croaked before he could stop himself, his expression, for the first time, gaining a tinge of panic.

Roland's expression turned darkly pleased. "Right, the female Jumper. So tell me, where would I find _her_?"

"I'll never tell you." Griffin hissed.

Roland pushed the button before LeFain could stop him, and Griffin was left with a swimming vision and more acid-like pain. "Who is she and where can I find her?" Roland asked dangerously.

"I'll never tell you." Griffin repeated, gasping. "David betrayed me. I'd give you anything on him, but I'll never, ever, _ever_ tell you where she is."

Roland growled and Griffin writhed once more, snarling and twisting and groaning in pain before falling limp with his head hanging low. The monitor beeped unsteadily in time with his heart. Most of the pain he felt now was there.

Griffin fixed his eyes on a square tile on the floor, which was strangely bucking and twisting under his gaze as Roland leaned in close to his ear.

"You'd better beg for mercy then."

Griffin shuddered, finding two meanings in that one, simple sentence. "Never." He gasped, as his heart throbbed painfully against his ribs and his vision faded to black.

-----

**Hey all! I hope you liked this chapter, please, please, please review! I love them lots, even if they are little short ones just telling me how much you want me to hurry up. I swear, telling me to hurry up will help. **

**To all of you who may have ideas for more songs for the soundtrack, feel free to send me them in a review! I love both music and reviews, and together is like… uber amazing!**

**Anyway, I will hopefully be updating soon… again. I think I did pretty well this time. Also, considering the fact that I have the next few chapters, to chapter fifteen to be exact, already written down on paper, I will be really excited to get feedback on those too, so I'm bound to be updating again soon. **

**I do have a life though, and it has been quite busy lately, so be patient, and I hope you don't hate me too much after the end of this chapter! Love you all! **

**-Wolfie**


	13. Infiltrate

Chapter 13: Infiltrate

**Once again, I express my upmost apologies at the time it took to update. I was suddenly ambushed by a huge AP test monster and it tried to eat me. Luckily, I fought it off valiantly and prevailed, though I sustained some serious injury. O.o**

**Nevertheless, I have returned! With an update to boot! Your questions shall be answered! I hope you're up for an all Mercy chapter! Poor Griffin is out of the spotlight for now… hell, we don't even know what's happened to him! D:**

**Oh, wait. I do. Hah. Have fun. :D**

**YagamiNeko: Yes indeed, that is the question. Alas, I can't answer that. You have to read, darling. Hopefully you won't love/hate me again, 'cause this chapter has a bit of a cliffhanger as well. xD**

**Secret-mystery: Oh dear. I apologize. I definitely did not update within the next minute. Here's an awesome chapter though! Sorry, no Griffin, but don't worry, he's soon to come. And I do promise to update again quite soon. I have more time nowadays, so it should be easy!**

**AtlantisGirl12: Yes, Jamie Bell would be able to play that scene quite well, and, if I do say so myself, I did capture his character well. I was both pleased and surprised. I'm glad you liked it. Hopefully you'll enjoy this one. :D**

**Nothing is What it Seems: Oh dear! Hah, I suppose I am a little bit of a sadist. I do so enjoy watching (or rather reading) you poor people squirm. Don't worry darling. I do have them written out, and though it took me a bit to get to typing this one, the next couple should come fairly quickly.**

**ShadowWolfDagger: Thank you so much! I love the song! It's perfect for Mercy and Griffin!**

**Rebell: Yes, poor Griffin indeed. We feel for him, we really do. But, it must be done to progress the storyline! And don't worry. Mercy shall make progress! Toward what, I wonder? Well, I do so love Griffin, and it would kill my heart to have him die… but I do so love tragedies as well… Oh, you'll see! Just read!**

**cr4zyb3x****: Thank you! I'm glad I have a new reviewer, and I hope you continue to enjoy the story.**

**Talkstoangel77: thank you! I like the song a lot! I really am enjoying this, being exposed to new music. It's great. Thank you for taking three days to think it up. :D**

**Tickin' Time Bomb: That's great! I'm glad you like my story. Thank you so much! I'm so glad I have new readers…**

**Bellatrix Kale: Thank you for joining my steadily growing group of reviewers! I'm glad you like my story. I'm glad you like my darling Mercy, and I hope you enjoy the next chapter. **

**Mrs Max McDowell: thank you for the review, darling.**

**Elizabeth-nightwatchmen: Thank you for the review! I think your rooting for Mercy is well placed. :D**

**Natalie-as-always: Thank you! I'm so glad I've found another Griffin fan! I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

**Thank you for your patience! I do so hope you enjoy this chapter, ladies and gentlemen. Hopefully I'll be able to update again soon.**

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Mercy became fully aware of her surroundings after countless hours of sitting still on a ratty mattress in a cave on an island in the middle of the Caribbean. Her tears had long dried, but she had remained still and numb in her stupor, lost in her grief, and consumed by her ever-growing sense of loneliness.

She had no clue as to what she should do. She had never felt so empty and alone. Griffin wasn't there to criticize movies with her, or boss her around, or play video games with her, and she had realized that even though she hadn't known him for very long, in the short time that they'd had together, she'd become very attached to him. Not just because she had no one else, but because, despite his arrogance and pig-headedness, she'd started to learn who he really was and grown close to him.

With nothing else to do, Mercy took a shower, dressed in clean clothes, and then jumped. She visited all of the places she had gone with Griffin. Frankly, she only had a few locations to work with. The Jack in the Box in San Diego. The café in France. Waffles in Borneo. Places like that that they had toured and enjoyed. She stayed well away from London though. Mercy avoided that town like the plague.

She was wandering in Thailand where they had picked up breakfast once, walking aimlessly after she had appeared there. There were quite a few tourists around, since it was the beginning of winter in the states. Mercy was awayre of everyone around her. Though, only because every guy she saw with brown hair looked like Griffin in his leather jacket. Until she realized that she was still wearing his extra, tarnished, bloodstained and ripped leather jacket, and the real Griffin had his newer one. Plus, no one she saw had anything but t-shirt on anyway.

Mercy was just turning away from a couple of people, one of which was a male with too-short brown hair and was overall too tall to be her Griffin. He was accompanied by a girl with dark, reddish-brown hair. Mercy wouldn't have even noticed her if the couple hadn't done something completely unexpected and definitely not normal. Like, disappearing.

Freezing suddenly, Mercy was almost run over by a male on a bicycle. At his yell, she snapped out her shocked state, inhaling sharply and then rushing forward to catch the Jumpscar right before it closed.

"Wait!"

She burst into a very chic and nicely decorated apartment, falling utterly still again as two pairs of eyes fixed on her.

"Who the hell are you?" The female asked acidly as she shot an accusing look at the guy standing next to her. He shrugged, looking utterly surprised as his gaze strayed back to Mercy.

"You Jumped. I followed your Jumpscar." She said simply, not even fidgeting under their eyes.

"Why?"

Mercy blinked at the female's question. "Because…" She faltered. Why _had_ she followed them?

The male's gaze slid to her jacket, and his head tilted slightly in an almost comical way. Sudden realization crossed his face, followed by alarm.

"You know Griffin." Not a question, but a stated fact, or rather, an accusation.

Mercy's heart skipped a beat. "Do you know where he is?" She asked hopefully, taking a step toward him.

"The last time I saw him he was threatening my life from his perch in an electrical tower in Chechnya. That was weeks ago." He said warily.

Mercy's expression turned black and bleak with her sudden comprehension of the situation. She looked older and more tired than she had in those two seconds of hope. "You're David." Now it was her turn to state a fact.

He nodded, still appearing quite cautious.

Mercy turned to the girl. "And you're the one David betrayed Griffin for… Millie, right?" She shot a bitter smirk to David. "I just barely gained his trust after what you did to him. And now he's gone… Paladins, they—"

"If they got him, he's probably already dead." David said bluntly and none-too-kindly.

"I know." Mercy replied softly, unbidden tears welling in her eyes.

"Get them back." Millie said suddenly, surprising them all. "If you really were friends with him, then you'll get them back." A spark of defiance had flared in her eyes. She didn't know Griffin, but she knew Paladins.

Mercy stared at her blankly for a moment as David remained utterly silent, a small smirk slowly growing on her features. "Will you help me?"

"No." David answered quickly, pretending not to notice how her face fell and then hardened. "We don't get mixed up with Paladins." He also ignored the slightly angry look Millie shot him.

Mercy surprised the both of them as she spoke again. "Fine." Neither of them had expected her to give up so easily. "I'll do it myself. I know you are no friend of his." Her voice was cool and clipped. As David started to protest, she cut him off. "Or, you're just a coward. Whichever works for you, mate." She sneered, jumping away before he could say more.

She already knew what she had to do. London was her destination. She jumped to their French city, though. The place they had eaten breakfast in the café. There she found a train station and bought a ticket. Within a few hours, she was on a train to London. Mercy barely realized that she was using the tricks Griffin had taught her to slip past Paladin notice.

About a day and a half later, her train had arrived and she'd already found a hotel. While on the train, she'd jumped away to pack a backpack full of essentials before jumping back to her car.

And so began her hunt.

Mercy started in Regent's Park, near the bar and where Griffin had been captured. From there, she jumped once, three feet from her starting spot, and then took cover in a tree yards away with Griffin's pair of binoculars.

She watched the spot where her jump had taken place, and sure enough, mere minutes later, two Paladins showed up. She could tell, not because they were armed with weapons, but because they were both wearing trenchcoats and were doing the best not to look suspicious as they glanced around furtively for her.

With a grim expression on her face, she watched them until they went away, and then followed them at a distance. The two Paladins took a very long route back to a pub, not the same one as before, that was only a few blocks away from the park. With her destination found, Mercy backtracked.

She headed to her hotel for a makeover. She pulled an outfit from her great big back of tricks, in other words, the backpack she'd brought, and changed her clothes. Her outfit went from jeans and a t-shirt to a punk rocker with darker jeans, a hot pink plaid and black lace skirt, bright purple belt, a black button up shirt, a lime green tie, and mismatching orange and blue striped fingerless gloves. Quite the ensemble, if she did say so herself. She pulled on her black lace up combat boots, fixed her makeup, and then looked in the mirror. What Mercy found was satisfactory, to say the least. She looked like a completely different person.

Mercy felt like a different person too. One with a deadly, unstoppable purpose.

Without any hesitation, she left the hotel and headed back to the bar. She walked in with confidence, knowing she was old enough for an American bar. London pubs were different, she knew, but she didn't know which way in age. The bartender and barmaids gave her no trouble, glancing up boredly as she passed before turning back to their work.

Still, Mercy felt eyes on her, and did her best to feign nonchalance, quickly spotting the Paladins and making her way to a stool at the bar close to them. They fell silent as she walked by, pretending not to notice them. As she ordered her drink, scotch and Coke, they started talking again.

"False alarm."

"Jumpers."

"Did you hear? Roland finally caught that one who's been causing all the trouble."

"David Rice?"

"No, not him. The Paladin hunter."

The Paladin snorted. "Stupid ass Jumper. Though he could switch roles, did he? Jumpers are meant to be prey."

"He did though, for a long time. Killed a good bloody hundred of us, give or take."

"They got him though."

"Yep. LeFain took care of him after they took him to the Versailles base where he's stationed."

"Oh, _that_ one. Bet the poor brute didn't last long." The Paladin said, laughing coldly.

So that was it then. Mercy held back tears. Versailles. That was in France. Not too far. She could jump back to their café town (she still didn't know the name) and take the train again.

A wicked thought entered her mind, and she jumped away, right out of the bar. If they had a machine, they were in for a nasty surprise. She appeared in the hotel, grabbed her bag, and then jumped to a spot directly over the English Channel. She fell a few yards laughing maniacally, and then jumped away before she touched the water. Why hadn't they thought of this before? Easy. Mean. Mercy laughed… well, _mercilessly_ as she jumped back to the train station in France. Versailles was thirty minutes away, the train left in an hour. She bought a ticket from a different teller so she didn't create a scene if she was remembered.

Mercy killed time, grabbing a coffee and a croissant to go, and then waited in a park, enjoying the cool afternoon. Almost four days had passed, and she'd barely eaten anything. Mercy scarfed down the croissant when she realized how hungry she actually was.

Mercy returned to the train station early, and was one of the first to board. Then it was a short, thirty minute train ride, and she had reached her destination.

For a moment, Mercy didn't know where to start. Versailles was a large, beautiful city, and she had no clue where the base was. Then she remembered what Griffin had taught her.

_If you can't find them, make them find you. Bloody arses walk into anything._

Mercy giggled softly at the memory. The last part wasn't completely necessary, and it made her throat catch and her eyes sting, but she held onto it. It helped her think of what they had taken away, and strengthened her resolve. She would get her vengeance.

She smiled wanly, and then searched out a park on her map. After locating one, Mercy found a restaurant. In the bathroom, she modified her outfit. She stripped down until she was wearing only her dark jeans and her black button up shirt, changing into black, comfortable tennis shoes and then fixing her makeup so that it didn't look as dark. She pulled a black baseball cap out of her backpack, threw all of the discarded clothes into the bag, and then slung it over her shoulder, pulling the cap on and then heading out into the lobby for directions to the park.

When she arrived, she jumped again, using the same technique as the last time, only three feet, before darting out of the park to take refuge in a café. She grabbed a window seat, ordered another coffee and croissant, and grabbed a newspaper that was in French. She didn't want to read it anyway.

So, Mercy sat like that and waited for a while, sipping her coffee, nibbling on her croissant, and pretending to read her paper, but really eyeing the park for any signs of Paladin activity. She was about to give up and leave out of frustration to jump the park again when a sleek, silver car pulled up and parked. Two Paladins got out.

Mercy bit her lip. They'd be checking the park, but not expecting to find anything since they'd arrived so late. Just as she suspected they would, the two Paladins walked into the park at a leisurely pace, leaving the car empty. A quick desperate plan formed in her mind as she abandoned her paper, her half finished coffee, and her barely touched croissant to head out of the café and walk casually over to the car like she owned the place. She gave a fast, heartfelt prayer and then tested the back handle. When it opened with ease, she slipped into the backseat.

She wondered for a moment where this would get her. They'd see her in the back. There was nowhere to hide. Unless… she leaned forward, reaching around the seat for the trunk button. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the two Paladins doubling back.

Mercy shrank back, panicking. How? Where?! The trunk had been a good idea, but… Mercy yanked on the back of the seat, and it came forward, revealing an opening to the trunk. She hastily slipped inside, breathing a sigh of relief, thanking Fate and Chance and whatever God might be watching over her. She closed the seat behind her just before the Paladins arrived.

As the car rolled off, she could barely hear their muttered words, attempting to find a comfortable position as she found herself pressed up against a cold metal box. When she'd found her spot, she stilled, listening intently and trying to discern where they were heading.

"False lead. You think it was…"

"…called in. She must have overheard…"

"…here? Nah."

Silence reigned for a moment, and Mercy held her breath, then, "It's getting late, we should…"

"…bar. Just go straight to the base…"

Mercy heard a small grunted affirmative, and let out her breath in a slow, thankful sigh, grinning wickedly. She'd find LeFain, and she'd make him hurt. It would probably end up as a suicide mission, but she didn't care. Griffin would be avenged.

The car rolled to a halt, and the rumbling purr of the engine stilled. She heard two doors open, and then slam closed. She suddenly hoped that they wouldn't open the trunk. Mercy hadn't heard them walk away, and was frozen momentarily in fear. After a few agonizing seconds of holding her breath, she pushed the seat down and peeked out. Nothing. She released her breath and slipped out of the trunk, closing the seat before opening the door and getting out of the car. Upon glancing around, she saw that she was inside a chain link, barbed wire topped fence, and standing in the shadow of a building that looked much like a research facility. The coming twilight cast odd shapes and shadows everywhere, and Mercy shivered, rolling down her sleeves.

She'd made it.

-----

**And there we are. All Mercy, no Griffin. Poor bugger, getting left all alone in a scary place. And what's with the sudden appearance of that wretched 'David' character?! Well, he does belong in this story, I don't want you to forget. Pure chance, by the way, that she ran into him. Haha. See you next time, darlings.**

**-Wolfie**


	14. Reeling

Chapter 14: Reeling

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**I'm a horrible terrible person and I need to be shot. D: I have no excuse for the long wait I've made you guys suffer through. I'm just a lazy person in general. Dx But for all that, I do so hope you enjoy this chapter, okay? And, everyone gets a complimentary Griffin plushie as compensation for me taking so long! –pulls string- Griffin says: "BLOODY ARSE!" Teehee. I love it. x3**

**Talkstoangels77: Would I kill Griffin? That's the question you have to ask yourself. For the moment, I shall satisfy you with this Griffin plushie. :3 Pull the string, and he says stuff like, "BLOODY ARSE!" Teehee.**

**Nothing is What it Seems: Aw. D: For your begging and my failness, you get a Griffin plushie too. –pulls string- Griffin says: "BLOODY ARSE!" Hmn. Is that the only thing he says? Haha. Thank you for the compliments dearie. Here's a chapter for you. Forgive me for making it take so long! **

**ShadowWolfDagger: Heehee. I actually finally brought David into the equation! Not for long though. xD I'm so bad… Here you go! **

**Atlantisgirl12: Thank you darling. :3 Hope you enjoy this chapter.**

**pbk: Yes, Mercy has some work to do. (You go girl!) And yes, David is a pansy. Let's make a David Hate Club!**

**SJWhitson86: Yay! New reviewer! Thanks for reading, hun. As for your own fanfic, good luck! A jump sex scene sounds… interesting? O.o Ah well. I shall check out your story sometime. :3**

**Bellatrix Kale: You MIGHT get sad if Griffin dies?! D: No plushie for you! Just kidding. Haha. Hope you like this chapter darling.**

**9Broken-vampirE3: Thank you! And I will definitely keep writing, even if I do so slowly.**

**DarkRose-Karma: Thank you for reading! I'm so glad you enjoy my story. **

**2k9girl: Thank you! I'll try to be faster in the future.**

**Mistress of Darkness: Teehee. Sorry. David's not cool enough to help Mercy. Anyway, don't worry about it darling. I have it all planned out. :3**

**I HAVE NO NAME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!: Thank you for reading. I really need to update faster. xD Sorry about the Griffin-less chapter. –hands a plushie and pulss string- Griffin says: "BLOODY ARSE!" How amusing. But still, I can't seem to figure out why that's the only thing he says! D: Thanks for the soundtrack ideas, I'll definitely look into them. And for the record, David's a prick. David's the main character, but that doesn't mean that without him Griffin wouldn't exist. They could have done a movie just about Griffin and I would have been quite happy. It's not like David's the Jumper version of God and without him no one is there. In my opinion at least.Though, since you're so impatient, I shall not keep you waiting any longer. xD **

**And finally, chapter fourteen.**

**-----**

The Paladins hadn't been exaggerating, and Mercy hadn't noticed while in the café, that it was really getting late. The warm afternoon had faded to a cool evening, and Mercy shivered as she crouched by the car, having pulled her sleeves down. She was thankful that she'd worn dark jeans and a black shirt. It would help disguise and camouflage her.

Though, unfortunately, Mercy hadn't planned anything out. Everything had been spur of the moment, and now, in the serpent's lair, she couldn't jump away unless she didn't want to come back, and she had no weapons to speak of. What was she to do? Obtaining something with which she could defend herself was imperative for the situation. If she was going to find LeFain, who had killed Griffin (there. She'd thought it. Her eyes teared up, though her resolve only hardened.), and when she found him, if she wanted to hurt him, kill him, then she'd need something to do it with.

Her first idea was to find a lone guard and knock him out, stealing his weapons. But that was a little too risky, and what would she use to knock him out with anyway? Her bare hands wouldn't do the job, and there didn't seem to be any large rocks around for her to use.

A thought occurred to her. There had been a metal box with her in the trunk, if there weren't useful things in there, then the least she could do with it would be to knock someone over the head with it.

Mercy glanced around, making sure that there were no Paladins near, and she quickly opened the driver's door of the car, popping the trunk. She then closed the door and rushed to the back. It had a light, so even in the dark she could see that there were four boxes, or more specifically, two briefcases, one medium sized box, and a large case that could only contain a machine.

Mercy shuddered and carefully clicked open a briefcase. Inside was a small rod, cartridges (probably for an ECG), and a long, black metal rod with a silver, pronged tip. With a wicked smirk, she yanked it out of the box and closed the trunk. She flicked the switch at the bottom of the rod and made sure to not touch the silver part at the end. She knew it would give her a nasty shock if she did.

With her weapon obtained, Mercy set off at a quick pace towards the base, crouching behind cars and other miscellaneous objects for cover whenever someone chanced her way.

She didn't actually have to do anything until she got to the door. After watching a couple of Paladins go though, she realized she most definitely needed to use an approved Paladin fingerprint to open the door. Also, it only let one through at a time, so she couldn't stalk in someone's wake.

Mercy came quickly up behind one of the Paladins and swung her rod like Griffin had taught her. With everything she had. She hit the poor man in the mall of the back and he went down with a small, pained noise. She dragged him the few feet to the door, placing his hand on the pad. The door beeped and then opened. Mercy had to hastily shove the unconscious Paladin around the side of the building before slipping into the base.

She felt a sudden thrill of fear and adrenaline and shuddered, gripping the rod tighter. Mercy stalked down the hall, realizing all too quickly that she had no idea where she was going.

Mercy gingerly opened a door in the hall, not knowing what she was looking for. A convenient map mounted on the wall with a blinking "you-are-here" sign? What she found instead was a row of computers, all of which were already on. One was actually logged on, and she slipped in, closing the door quietly shut behind her.

As she stepped further into the room, however, a male stepped out of a side room with a hot cup of coffee.

Mercy reacted immediately. Her rod swung for his gut, and the coffee mug shattered on impact with the ground. With a grunt of pain, the man fell to the ground, and she gave him a solid blow to the head to make sure he was out cold before letting herself relax a bit.

Mercy had realized though, that it seemed that normal people couldn't stand electricity like Jumpers could. She grimaced and walked over to the computer, keeping her weapon with her and well within reach. She checked the computer for a map, first and foremost, and found one after a couple of minutes of frenzied searching.

She was closing the windows on the computer as she waited for the map to print when she stumbled on a file that had been opened before she'd gotten onto the computer. Upon reading a part of it, she realized that it was a log of entrances and exits to a certain room in the base. Mercy was about to close it when she saw the second to last name on the log.

Laurent LeFain.

In: 3:07pm. Out: -----.

So, he hadn't left yet. Mercy grinned wickedly, checked the room number, and then closed the windows. She left the computer, snatched up the map from the printer, and then left the room. It seemed that things were looking up for her. Fate and Chance were on her side.

Mercy made her way quickly through the base's halls, dodging into doorways to escape notice at times, though sometimes she failed and ended up knocking out another Paladin instead. Every once and a while an unconscious body would have to be stashed in an empty room or closet along the hall. Once, she was almost duped, and ended up grappling with a Paladin for a moment before managing to shove the pronged end of the rod into his gut. She could feel the electricity go through him and hit her, though she was left breathless, while he fell to the ground, out cold just like the others.

The door labeled 316 was heavy duty, large and steel and thick, and it had a hand pad like the front door. It was the first of a whole hall of similar doors. Repressing another shudder, Mercy glanced around. The hall was completely empty. No one was around to hinder her.

Or help her.

The last Paladin she'd attacked was a ways away. She was stuck. With a frustrated sound forming in her throat, she started to backtrack. Mercy would just have to drag the Paladin all the way down here. As she turned a corner though, she ran smack into someone. With a yelp, she brought the rod up, slamming it with a crack into the bottom of the male's jaw. His mouth closed with a click and he went reeling backwards. Mercy stood over him for a moment, panting. She'd experienced quite a scare there, though she'd gotten just what she'd needed. Gripping him by the shoulders and dragging him to the door was her task. After a couple of backbreaking minutes of struggling with the large male, she managed to get him to the door and place his hand on the pad.

The door opened, and she slipped inside, gripping her rod tightly. It was unneeded. The room was empty. LeFain must have just left.

But no, the room wasn't empty, she realized with a start. Some poor soul was strapped to a sort of table, tilted so that he was nearly perpendicular with the ground. His head drooped, and Mercy was about to turn away from what she thought was just a dead body, something she didn't want to see, when she realized who it was.

It really was something she didn't need or want to see. No words could have voiced her anguish at the sight of his limp form. Mercy fell to her knees, dropping the rod with a clatter as tears sprung to her eyes and her head reeled. It was Griffin. The leather jacket, the tousled hair… the only thing missing from the equation were his sparkling blue eyes and crooked grin. But why would he be grinning? He was dead. He was gone. He was—moving?

Mercy choked on a sob as she watched, amazed, as his head shifted. Was this some cruel joke Fate was playing on her? Could he really be alive? No. It was too much to hope. Mercy couldn't—wouldn't—allow herself to hope. She would only be crushed in the end anyway. But then she heard a weak rasp that sent her wounded heart into a frenzy of painful thrashes.

"I told you… I'm not gonna… tell you where she bloody is…" He said painfully, without lifting his head.

Mercy bit back a hysterical laugh. "Well that's a bloody shame," She said, mimicking his British accent. " 'Cause I'm right here."

She saw him tense visibly, and then he slowly looked up. "Mercy?" Griffin's voice was barely audible as he started disbelievingly at her. No Paladins. His unlikely savior was just sitting there on the floor.

"You look like crap." Mercy commented lightly, though the exhaustion in her voice was plain as day.

Griffin let out a hysterical chuckle, one that led within moments to a raspy, choking cough. When his coughing fit had passed, he looked up at her again, his blue eyes slightly dull, though there was a hint of the old sparkle in their depths. "I could say the same. Miss me, love?"

-----

**Thank you for being so patient (and impatient). Hope you all cherish your Griffin plushies. –tugs string- Griffin says: "HURRY THE BLOODY F--- UP WITH THE NEXT REVIEW, WOLFIE!"**

**O.o So he does say other things… Since it's summer, I have more time on my hands. I see no reason as to why another chapter will take me as long as the last did… Hopefully you'll be reading the next chapter within the next few days! I love you all! Don't forget to review, and if you find anything for a soundtrack, don't hesitate to let me know! **

**-Wolfie**


	15. Hurt

Chapter 15: Hurt

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**Yay! I win this time! I'm posting a new chapter the very next day, and it's an extra long one too! Love me. Love me. Love me. I'm also glad that you like your Griffin plushies. I made them myself. :3 Anyway, darlings, I hope you enjoy this chapter! Teehee. I'm excited to read your reviews, so be sure to let me know what you think!**

**YagamiNeko: Yes, Mercy is an uber-spy. It makes me happy. Yay! Griffin plushies! xD Hope you like this chapter!**

**Lady Andrya: Yay! A new reader! Hope you're happy, I updated two days in a row. :D**

**Bellatrix Kale: Yay! Yes, Griffin plushies and action figures should be mass produced… maybe I should send the idea to someone. :3**

**AtlantisGirl12: What could be better indeed! Another update for you, darling. :)**

**Nothing is What it Seems: Haha. If you'd held out on a review, you would have been surprised to find another chapter so soon, hmn? Though, I suppose… I always look forward to your reviews, so I prolly would have waited for yours to show up. Haha. For that reason, I'm glad you decided to review! I'm glad you like the Griffin plushie. I adore mine. :3 I updated quickly this time, yes? No groveling needed! And, it's even an uber long chapter! Much longer than last time. –excitement-**

**LuLu: Thank you for reading hun! Operation Get Griffin Out Of That Hellhole has begun! :3 **

**Mrs Max McDowell: Yay! Another plushie lover. –nuzzles plushie- Enjoy this chapter love.**

**talkstoangels77: The plushies are a little cute _and_ a little disturbing! xD Lovelove. Thanks for the review. I checked out the song, it's added to my list!**

**And now, chapter fifteen after only a short wait!**

**-----**

"Miss me, love?"

Mercy's relieved expression turned suddenly guarded, and Griffin's already ashen face paled further.

"Yeah." She said softly. "It's not like I have anyone else to miss."

"Mercy, I didn't mean it like that."

"Mean it like _what_?" Her expression had turned a little twisted, slightly bitter. She hadn't expected him to be alive. She hadn't expected to need to deal with this. Now, she couldn't help the reproach she felt. Griffin opened his mouth as if to say something, but no sound came out before he had closed it again, looking more tired and worn than he had already, if that was even possible.

Mercy's expression softened for a split second, before she stood and walked over to him, studying the control panel as she came up to it. She hesitated a moment, fingering one of the buttons.

"We're even now, I suppose. I might as well leave, huh? No more puppy to look after." She pushed the button, and the metal bars holding his arms released him.

Griffin pulled his arms close to his chest, rubbing his chafed and burnt wrists carefully and glancing away from Mercy. "I don't want you to leave." He muttered, not looking at her.

"What? You complain about me all the time, Griffin! You constantly tell me how much of a burden I am! You like being alone better than hanging out with me, and you only just let me come on missions with you! Are you telling me I'm interpreting this wrong?"

Griffin lifted his gaze, staring blankly at her for a moment. How could she ever know his reasons for what he did? When you lost everything you'd previously kept close to your heart, you started to make sure to keep things away. Griffin knew this only too well. He didn't know how to act around people anymore, not really. He'd isolated his heart and himself as well.

"You have no idea. You don't understand. Not yet." He rasped, looking away again.

"So make me understand." Mercy said coolly.

Griffin stared off into space for a moment, looking quite like a cornered animal that had been tortured and taunted… one that no longer had any fight left. She hated knowing that she was only worsening this, but she had to know.

"When everything you love is gone, you go a little cold." Griffin said meeting her gaze. "You become a hermit, and you don't let anyone in, because you don't want it to hurt more when they go, because everyone—everything, is temporary."

Mercy was fighting back tears. "Love isn't temporary." She whispered.

"No, you're right. But the people you love are. Everyone dies. It's not a question of will, it's a question of when."

"Is that why you didn't want to take me in? Because you didn't want to get hurt again?"

When he next broke the silence, Griffin's voice was radiating pure hatred. "They tear everything from me, Mercy. The only person I can rely on is myself. The only person I can love is myself. Why? 'Cause the bloody fuckers can't take me away. I'm starting to hate myself because I've been cooped up in my own head for so long."

Mercy let out a long sigh. "You don't love me."

Griffin tilted his head, his blue eyes wary. "No. But…" He paused, seeming lost for words. He then spoke after a long gusting sigh. "I like you. It scares me to hell and back."

Mercy stared at him for a moment, and he stared right back. She blinked, and then looked back down at the control panel, pressing the button she had found almost violently, punctuating the action with a muttered, "Oh."

Griffin collapsed with a sharp intake of breath, and then he was on the ground, muttering a stream of curses.

"Griffin, are you okay?"

"No, I am not o-bloody-fucking-kay." He said hotly, wincing as he shifted into a more comfortable position and started to rub his cramped calves. Mercy laughed softly and sank into a crouch next to him.

"You're starting to sound more like yourself already." She said, a soft smile on her face.

He glared up at her for a moment before starting violently as the metal door started to open.

"Get up! C'mon, we've got to go!" Mercy exclaimed as LeFain and Roland rushed through the door. She reached for her weapon before realizing too late that it was on the floor halfway across the room.

Roland lifted his gun.

"GET DOWN!"

Griffin tackled her, pinning her to the ground, right as an electric cable shot over their heads and hit the far wall.

But, why hadn't he Jumped them away to safety? Mercy stared at him, bewildered and scared for a moment before LeFain was right on top of them, wielding a rod quite like Mercy's and swinging it. The pronged tip contacted with Griffin's side, throwing him off of Mercy and into the base of the table he'd been trapped on. He writhed for a moment, and then fell still, panting. LeFain was standing over him, a scowl on his angelic features.

Mercy jumped up and threw a fist at him, putting all the force she had into it. Her fist connected with his jaw, sending him stumbling back a step. Mercy was, however, thrown off balance and left with furiously aching knuckles, and LeFain's strong hands grabbed her around the wrists, expertly flipping her onto the table. One wrist was placed in a lock, and he took a step back to dodge a kick she tried to send at him.

Griffin groaned, struggling to get up, only to be kicked in the side by Roland and sent to the floor again.

Mercy whimpered as LeFain headed over to the control panel. She desperately tugged her wrist, but she was stuck. "Griffin! Get up!"

He groaned again, not really moving. "Mercy…"

Roland stood over him, a smirk on his face. "I don't offer out mercy to Jumpers."

Griffin raised his gaze to Roland, a scowl on his face. "Not talking to you, asshole." With that, he kicked out at Roland, catching the male off guard and managing to kick his legs out from under him. As he fell, Griffin was scrambling to his feet. LeFain had already pressed a button, too quickly for Griffin to stop him.

Mercy screamed. Griffin snarled.

He flickered, reappearing directly next to LeFain, his fist connecting with the male's gut. He then used the same trick he had on Roland and hooked his foot on the male's ankles, sending him to the ground. Griffin slammed his hand down on the button he'd seen Mercy push earlier, and the restraint released her.

She tumbled off of the device coughing and spluttering, right next to Roland.

LeFain slammed his rod into Griffin's back.

Griffin let out another snarl of pain, crumpling and then kicking out at LeFain. The male took a couple of steps back, and Griffin scrambled up again, stumbling over toward Mercy. She rolled out of the way of Roland's knife with a small scream. She clawed at someone as they grabbed her arm, before she flickered and Griffin and Mercy reappeared halfway across the room, closer to the door.

Griffin released her arm, collapsing with a groan. Mercy blinked, panting, panic setting in for a moment. "Griffin!"

"Stupid fucking assholes…" He said loudly, though Roland was barking orders to LeFain as they both regained their footing, and Mercy doubted he'd heard.

"Stay with me, Griff." Mercy said frantically, her heart jumping in her throat as she saw Roland hefting up an ECG and heard the door open behind them, letting in reinforcements. Damn.

"See you later, fuckers." She growled, jumping herself and Griffin away. They ended up over the English Channel, fell a few yards, and then they appeared in the lair, slamming into the ground with a thud, Mercy still holding onto Griffin, who was quite wide eyed. He shivered, closing his eyes.

"What. The. Hell."

"I jumped over the English Channel, just off the side of the bridge. If they follow the Jumpscar, they'll get wet."

Griffin seemed to relax a bit then, not opening his eyes. He laughed weakly. "How come I never thought of that?"

"Superior female intellect." Mercy answered smartly.

Griffin smiled, letting out a small sigh. His head was in her lap, and his eyes were still closed.

"Don't fall asleep." Mercy said softly.

"Why not?"

"You need food and water. Or at least water."

"Water sounds good. Food sounds good. After sleep." He said, his words almost slurring.

Mercy got up carefully, though Griffin still groaned as he was jostled. She jumped over to the fridge and grabbed a water bottle before jumping back to Griffin and handing it to him. He let out yet another groan and sat up, taking the water bottle and downing it in a few large gulps.

Mercy jumped away to get him food, heading to a fast food restaurant from her old town. She bought enough food to feed five people from Taco Bell, and then jumped back.

Griffin flinched slightly from his position on the couch, staring at her with bleary eyes. Mercy was glad he had at least moved off of the floor. He'd also taken his shoes off. Griffin seemed to perk up a little at the smell of food, and Mercy took a taco out of the bag for herself, gave him the rest, and retrieved them both drinks from the fridge before sitting next to him. She watched worriedly as he wolfed down the food, barely finishing her own. When he had finished, he leaned back against the couch with a sigh.

"So how did you get in there, Mercy?"

"I stowed away in the trunk of a Paladin's car after I lured them to the park. The base was in Versailles."

He didn't reply for so long that she was sure he'd fallen asleep, because his eyes were closed. Then, he spoke again. "Why? Why would you put yourself in danger like that?!" He sounded angry, frustrated.

Mercy let out a bitter laugh. "I thought you were dead. I wanted revenge."

"How did you get to Versailles?!"

"I met David and Millie in Thailand. Millie said something that got to me, so I went back to London, found out where they had taken you and how LeFain had you in his clutches and you were probably already dead… and then I took a train."

"David and Millie? Just by chance? God damn it! I've been _looking _for him!"

Mercy eyed him closely. "I only followed them 'cause they Jumped right in front of me."

"You followed them? Can you take me there?" Griffin's eyes were open again, and he suddenly leaned forward.

"Griffin, I—"

"Please?"

"I don't remember, Griffin. I was kind of grieving and out of it, you know. I don't remember what their place looked like at all." Mercy said, looking down and appearing quite haunted.

Griffin paled a bit. "Oh." He leaned back again, looking thoughtful before he yawned. "Never mind then. I'll find him someday."

"I'm sorry Griffin. You aren't mad?"

"Nope." He said, smiling softly as he closed his eyes. "Then again, I'm too tired to really be mad. I'll probably be more sore about it when I wake up."

"Go to sleep then, Griffin. You're dead beat."

He mumbled something under his breath that sounded like, "Sure, 'kay, whatever…" And then promptly laid down on the couch, using Mercy's lap as a pillow of course.

"Uhm… Griffin? Don't you want to go to your bed? You'll be more comfortable there."

"Too tired." He muttered.

A few seconds later, the air was permeated by snores, and Mercy sighed. "Damn. I forgot to check him for wounds."

­­-----

"Mercy, wake up."

Mercy groaned.

"Wake up! I'm bloody starving!"

Mercy started awake to find herself staring up at Griffin. Upon further investigation, she found that she was actually in his lap.

Hadn't she fallen asleep the other way around?

Mercy sat up groggily and Griffin heaved an exasperated, overexaggerated sigh of relief. She didn't miss how he winced as he shifted his position so that he was sitting up straighter.

"You shouldn't have—"

"You fell asleep, Mercy." He interrupted.

"When did you wake up?"

"I woke up the first time a couple hours ago and sat up. You moved into my lap, and then I fell asleep again."

"You're hurt."

"Not badly, I'll be fine."

Mercy glared at him for a moment before standing and walking across the room to retrieve the first aid kit.

"Take off your shirt."

What, you want me to strip for you now?" He asked sarcastically, though he did what he was told. Off came the dirty white shirt. He still had a couple bandages from previous wounds, and Mercy checked those first. They were all almost fully healed.

She ran her fingers down his bare chest, counting his ribs and pressing lightly to check for injury. He'd been hit in the side with an electric rod, and a bruise was forming on the spot, which she worked gingerly around. He didn't move when she touched it, and she deemed the rib not broken, so she moved on. Griffin suddenly squirmed, and she thought she'd found a broken rib, until she realized that Griffin had a weak smile on his face and he had just let out a strangled laugh. Mercy smiled tightly at the fact that Griffin was ticklish, moving to the other side. She almost started laughing with him when he squirmed again, but her smile faded when he winced.

"Turn around."

"It's nothing. I'm just a little sore, that's all."

Mercy let out a soft growl, climbing onto the back of the couch and perching there, examining his back despite his protests. At first glance, there was nothing wrong with him, no electrical burns thanks to his leather jacket, no cuts, no apparent injury to be seen, save for a growing bruise halfway down, from the rod LeFain had hit him with. Though. upon running her hands gently down his back, she found that his muscular shoulders and back were tensed.

She sighed. "The electrical shock overstimulated your muscles. You're going to be tense and sore for a couple of days to a week."

"Told you it was nothing." He said gruffly. "Can we be done now?"

"I need to bandage the burns on your wrists, and are your legs okay?" She got off of the back of the couch and sat on the arm, pulling his hand into her lap so she could bandage his wrists. "Don't be macho. You need to tell me where you hurt." She cleaned the burns and then started to wrap them.

He glared at her stonily for a moment. "I told you, I'm fine."

"Griffin, if you die, it'll totally be your fault." She said, tying off the bandage and motioning for his other hand.

Griffin rolled his eyes and gave her his wrist. "I'm not going to die. I'll be alright."

"Where do you hurt? You could be internally bleeding, broken bones, strained ligaments, sprained—"

"Mercy dear, I hurt everywhere. I'm as sore as hell, but I assure you, I will be fine."

"Where does it hurt most then?" She asked stubbornly, raising an eyebrow at him, tying off the second bandage.

"God damn it Mercy! Everywhere you already looked! My bloody wrists are burning, my old wounds are stinging, and my back and shoulders ache!"

Mercy smiled. "Where, here?" She kissed the bandages over his wrist where the burns were.

"Yes, there! And—" He broke off as Mercy kissed a bandage on his arm over an older wound.

"There?"

He nodded mutely, watching as her eyes moved up his arm to his shoulder.

She kissed him near his collarbone before her green eyes moved up to meet his blue ones. "And there, right?"

He just nodded silently again, his blue eyes locked with hers. Mercy's lips curved into another smile, her green eyes glittering.

"Anywhere else?"

Griffin stared at her for a moment, looking like he wanted to say something, but instead, he suddenly leaned up and brought his lips to hers, kissing her. His hands found hers and then he pulled her down to the couch with him.

When they broke off, Mercy found herself sitting on Griffin's lap, her heart fluttering wildly and her breath having momentarily left her. "Hmn." She said, raising an eyebrow. "I didn't know it hurt there."

Griffin looked confused. "I shouldn't have done that."

"Why not?" Mercy asked quietly, her green eyes calm.

Griffin shifted his gaze to meet hers. "If you die, it's going to kill me."

"I'm not going to die."

"Everyone else has! Well, E.V. turned on me, and I had to break ties with Henry, but my parents, Sam, Consuelo, and Alejandra all died!"

Mercy could tell he was getting quite distressed.

"Who were they?"

"Sam and Consuelo took me in after my parents died. Henry was a friend of min from karate. E.V. was my first girlfriend."

"And Alejandra?"

Griffin had gone completely still, his eyes distant. "Someone I loved. She died years ago."

Mercy watched his face, barely reeling in a pang of jealousy. She could see in his haunted gaze that he had truly loved her, and blamed himself for her death.

"I'm not like them." She said, and he seemed to snap out of a dream realm and rejoin her back in the present. He raised an eyebrow. "I'm not human. I'm like you."

"Are you suggesting we're aliens?" The ghost of a smile was on his face as he spoke.

"No, but we're different. Besides, if I die, if a Paladin kills me," Mercy noticed the pain seeping into his expression, but continued anyway. "You can't blame it on yourself, because they want me dead too. I'm a target of theirs even without you around."

Griffin stared at her uncertainly for a moment, and then sighed, leaning his head back against the couch with a small moan as his eyes closed.

"Griffin! What's wrong? You did it to me, you know! I never kissed you on the lips!"

Griffin smiled and opened one eye. "Sorry, love. I didn't even think about it when the Paladins were after us. Of course, after, I thought about it a lot. This last one was your fault though. It's a little hard to resist when you're being all seductive and sexy."

"Me? Seductive and sexy? I was kissing your boo-boo's!" She frowned, though she was resisting the urge to laugh.

"That wasn't an insult you know."

"I know." She rolled her eyes at him, and then sighed. "I'm glad you're alright."

"You were really worried about me, weren't you?"

Mercy grinned. "Nope." Her smile faded. "I thought you were dead, remember?"

Griffin grimaced. "I almost wished I was at one point. They were asking me where you and David were. I definitely didn't expect you to come save me."

"Like I said. We're even now. Hey, does that mean that I upped my status?"

"Hmn. I suppose you can be my partner-in-crime now."

"Officially?"

"Un-officially until further notice." He said, grinning.

"Eh. That's good enough for me." Mercy grinned back before leaning down to kiss him.

They were interrupted by a loud, gurgling snarl. Griffin broke away with a muttered, "Ugh. I told you I was bloody starving…" and Mercy laughed.

"M'kay. I'll take a hint. Food."

-----

**Alright! What do you guys think? Griffin's getting in deeper than he originally wanted to. –reminisces- Remember how he didn't even want Mercy to come home with him? Haha. Poor guy. Anyway, hope you liked it! Let me know what you think of all the goings on, okay? Do you approve? Disapprove? No matter what you say it's not going to change anything I have planned… but I'd like to know what you think anyway. xD**

**See you next time, darlings! I have no clue when you can expect the next update. I only have a couple more chapters written out on paper, so we'll see how these next few go. For all of our sakes, I hope it doesn't take too long. :3**

**-Wolfie**


	16. Bowling

Chapter 16: Bowling

**-----**

**Sorry I fail so much guys. I won last time, with a quick update, but it took me a bit to get this one up. On a happier note, any who want a Griffin plushie can go to photobucket(dot!)com and login as werewolfness with the password mercedes. Just like that! Inside, you shall see a picture that I drew of Griffin and Mercy plushies, as well as all manner of pictures of Griffin! Feel free to save them as you wish. It is my penance for failing you all so. D:**

**AtlantisGirl12: Thank you dear. I think that it's funny Griffin's ticklish. And don't worry. Mercy won't forget. :3 As for Griffin catching up to David… eh. Just wait and see. ;)**

**Nothing is What it Seems: Hi again! I'm glad you liked the chapter. xD It made me happy, and I couldn't resist the boo-boo kissing! Haha. Well, hopefully you'll like this one. It took me long enough to get it up, hmn?**

**Bellatrix Kale: Yay! I'm glad you approve. I drew a plushie of both of them for you guys! Be sure to check them out if you haven't already. :3**

**Talkstoangels77: Sorry I missed your reply last time, dear. :3 Gotcha this time though! Hope you like the chapter.**

**Lulu: fluff alert indeed. xD Have fun with this next chapter darling.**

**I HAVE NO NAME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!: Hmn. Perhaps you should get a name. Typing what you have now is getting quite tedious. And yes, you are impatient, darling. Don't worry, most people are to a certain extent. Just remember, you can't rush genius. xD And seriously, I get what you're saying, but I do believe that the creators didn't need David to think up Griffin. If they'd been given that power to work with, he would have been created just fine. My fanfic would be much different without David, which is quite true. I might not even have a fanfic, for I might not have been irritated and unsatisfied if the movie had been all about Griffin. So… yes. As for your brother using Mercy in his fanfic, I suppose he may… as long as I am given credit for it. If not, I shall have to complain.**

**afdsf: In the book, he did just break off ties. In my fanfiction, I'm going a bit further, and making her dead, thanks to poor Griffin. I may have a flashback of that sometime. It's just something I added.**

**ShadowWolfDagger: Thank you for the review, darling, and don't worry about missing a chapter. It's all good. :3 Thanks for the song as well! I'll be sure to check it out. :)**

**Lady Andrya: Thank you! I hope you like this update as well.**

**Andie McCubbins: yay! A new reader! Hello and welcome! Thank you for the awesome long review. I'm so glad you like it. I don't dig David so much, and I seriously think that Griffin needs more attention. xD Thank you for all of the songs! I'll check them out and add them if I like them. As for What I've Done, that one's definitely on there, and I totally get it. :3**

**El Dao Padre: Thank you! Five stars! That totally rules. I'm glad you like it. Keep reading and reviewing!**

**Wolfdog127: thank you for the song ideas! Someone suggested one of them as well, so I'll be sure to check it out soon. **

**Pbk: Oh, don't worry. He's going to get better soon, and Davey-boy is also soon to reappear. ;) keep reading!**

**And here is the long-awaited chapter sixteen!**

­­-----

Mercy retrieved the two of them food, heading to McDonald's, just because it was fast and easy, even though her opinion on the food was that it was utter crap. When she returned to the Lair, Griffin was where she had left him on the couch, navigating a DVD menu with the remote.

Mercy came to a complete stop, staring at Griffin and thinking how oddly normal it seemed that he was getting ready to watch a movie after everything they had just been through.

Griffin looked up at her with one of his most normal cocky smiles. "What are you staring at?"

Mercy shook her head and continued on her way over to him, setting the food next to him without a word. The meny for the Bourne Identity was on, and he pressed play as Mercy stepped onto the couch. He had expected her to fold her legs under her, but instead she sat on top of the couch behind him. Griffin was about to ask what she was doing, even protest her absolute insanity, when she started to massaged his tense shoulders.

"I'm not going to choke you or anything." She said almost irritably. "It'll help your muscles to relax. I used to be in nursing school, remember?"

Griffin grunted a barely audible reply as he dug into the paper bag for his food. He didn't complain that it was from McDonald's. They then sat and watched the movie in a contented silence.

-----

Griffin and Mercy laid low for several weeks. Slowly but surely, their cuts and bruises healed to be as good as new, and things resumed, save for occasional kisses, as they had been before Griffin's capture. In the States and Europe, it was the middle of winter, cold and snowy, and their little corner at the edge of the world continued to rain, a slightly warm, continuous downpour.

After a few adjustments to the Lair, namely, buckets placed under spots that dripped, they decided that they did not need to move. Sometimes Griffin or Mercy would trip over a half full pot of water and get one pantleg soaked, but they dealt with the headache quite well.

Soon enough, six weeks and four days, to be exact, they were fully healed, done resting, and itching to track Paladins again. So they did. Mercy went on her first successful mission, and they headed to a bar to celebrate.

An authentic Irish pub would be more exact.

They walked in, Mercy's arm slipped through Griffin's, her face pale. Griffin himself looked a lot better, less unkempt, though his hair remained messy. He was wearing a long sleeved, red button-up shirt, and had left his leather jacket at the Lair. He looked clean cut and casual, a lopsided grin on his features.

"Told you it would be fun. You did great, Mercy."

"Yeah, Griffin, killing people is fun." Mercy said, not bothering to disguise her sarcasm.

Griffin glanced over, looking slightly concerned. "You okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine, other than the fact that I killed someone. He probably had family and friends and tons of people who'll miss him!"

Griffin shushed her. "Mercy, he killed countless Jumpers. And the family and friends that would have missed them. All because he thought 'God' should he the only one with our power. We killed a killer and made the world a better place." He reached up with his free hand to squeeze hers, and she tightened her grip on his arm. "Bloody good riddance if you ask me."

Mercy looked thoughtful. "You're right. I never really thought of it like that." A weak smile started to spread on her features.

They made it to the bar and took a seat, ordering their drinks. Griffin was doing his best to cheer her up, which involved a very good attempt at getting her drunk. Of course, Griffin was successful. He was soon laughing at her slurred speech and having quite the interesting conversation with her. Right as he stood so that he could reach in his pocket for his wallet, someone bumped roughly into him. Muttering apologies, the male retreated, and Griffin shook his head before reaching for his wallet.

Only, it wasn't there.

Griffin froze for a moment, and then whirled around, toward the direction the male disappeared.

"God damn it!" He caught sight of the back of the male's head and stormed off into the crowd, ignoring Mercy's protests. He made his way through the crowd, gripped the man by the shoulder, and spun him roughly around. "My wallet had better be back in _my_ bloody hand in three seconds, or I swear I'll—"

He broke off when he recognized the face staring back at him.

"You."

"I—I thought you were dead! She said—"

"David, did you—oh." The girl that walked up was also a familiar face. Millie halted when she caught sight of Griffin. David looked pale and frightened, while Griffin appeared frozen in shock.

He suddenly seemed to thaw. "Dead. Hah. You fucking wish, don't you?" Griffin's tone slowly slipped into a half growl.

"No, I—I mean—"

"Remember what I said, David?" Griffin said, advancing a step, his expression livid.

"No, you don't have to—"

Griffin grabbed David by the collar and slammed him into the ground. Though, they were no longer in the pub when David's back made contact. Griffin had jumped them to an Arctic wasteland.

"Don't!"

"You left me in a fucking electrical tower in Chechnya, Davi!"

"I had to save her! And I did it, I caught Roland and—"

"And what?! You didn't kill him! In fact, not too long ago I was being tortured by him for information about where _you_ were!"

"I'm sorry! Millie needed me, I couldn't—"

"Couldn't come back for me later, could you?! 'Marvel Teamup'! That was the stupidest thing I've ever done!" Griffin, who actually hadn't done anything yet, save for pin David down against a cold, snowy ground, straightened, kicking David viciously in the ribs when he tried to get up. As David rolled back onto his back again, coughing, Griffin glared down at him. "Give me my fucking wallet back. Pickpocketing. Feh. I knew you robbed banks, but I didn't think you'd ever sink so low."

David pulled the wallet out of his pocket and threw it at Griffin.

Griffin caught it against his chest and then shoved it into his back pocket. "Bloody asshole. I hate your fucking guts you know."

"What would you have done?!" David said, struggling to stand.

Griffin stared at him as he got up. "You know what I would have done."

" 'Bowling', right? No!" David was standing now, a few inches taller than Griffin. "Not Millie. I know you don't care about her. No. That girl."

"Mercy?" Griffin's brows were creased in a grown, and he still looked quite furious.

"Whatever her name is." David said impatiently. "Would you have let me blow her up if it meant killing my arch nemesis?"

Griffin's anger came to a sudden and unexpected halt, and he stared at David blankly. He was considering. How much did he hate Roland, and how important was Mercy to him? He found it very hard to answer.

"I thought so. If it came down to it, you'd save her."

"You don't know me" Griffin said fiercely, shuddering and taking a step back.

"No, not really. I knew you for barely a day and a half. But I think you love her."

Griffin's expression had hardened. "Love is a word as strong as hate, and it makes people weak. I don't love anyone anymore." His voice was toneless and cold, completely apathetic and cut off. "I don't ever want to see you again, David."

Then he had jumped back into the doorway of the pub. Griffin made his way quickly to Mercy, who was sitting next to Millie and babbling incessantly. Millie seemed to only be paying partial attention, and jumped to her feet at the sight of Griffin. Mercy was a little slower to react, though when she looked up and saw Griffin, she too got up, throwing her arms around him and leaning all of her weight on him.

Griffin hesitated, though at all of her weight being put on him, he wobbled a little, and then wrapped his arms around her with a halfhearted roll of his eyes.

Millie looked quite upset. "What did you do to him?" She hissed.

Mercy leaned back a bit to look into his face, her green eyes meeting his.

Griffin kept his arms around her, supporting her, since he was pretty sure she wasn't able to stand by herself. He closed his eyes with a sigh. "Nothing."

"Don't lie to me!" Millie said, louder this time.

"Alright! I nearly choked him to death and might have broken a rib or two, but he should be fine." Griffin sounded quite rueful. Whether or not that was because he hadn't beat David up enough, or because he regretted what he had done was up for interpretation.

"Good… good boy, Griffin." Mercy said, leaning up and kissing him.

When she pulled back, Griffin had a crooked grin on his features. "Eew. You taste like booze." He glanced up as David walked in, looking, for all intents and purposes, almost normal. Griffin watched, his expression blank and guarded, as he fixed his collar and then walked up to Millie.

"We'd better get you home, love." Griffin said, patting Mercy on the back.

She lay her head against his chest, sighing happily and closing her eyes. "M'kay." She paused for a moment, and Griffin thought that she might have actually fallen asleep, before she spoke again. "Hey, I can hear your—you have a heartbeat." She slurred, giggling.

Griffin was frowning, looking down at her, before a smirk slowly crossed his features. "What, did you think I was a bloody vampire or something?"

"Vampires drink… they drink blood you know."

"Yeah, not booze, like you. C'mon." He made a point to completely ignore David and Millie as they left the pub. They watched him support her and keep her from falling the whole way out.

"She really loves him." Millie whispered softly, leaning into David's side.

"He told me he doesn't love anyone." David said, wrapping his arm around her.

"Well he's lying."

-----

**There! David is officially… well, back in the story? Kind of? At least Griffin… well, he kind of got him back? Poor Griffin didn't even really beat the flip out of him. D: Ah well.**

**Rawr. Anyway, I shall hopefully be updating soon enough. Thank you to all my reviewers! Be sure to check out photobucket for the plushies!**

**-Wolfie**


	17. Dinner

Chapter 17: Dinner

**So.**

**Yeah. I suck big time.**

**Not gonna even try denying this.**

**How long has it been, almost two years now?**

**I sincerely apologize, and I would honestly understand if a lot of you never came back to read from me again. D; As it is, here is another Chapter for you. Finally. No, I didn't die. I just got busy and then got lazy and then forgot. I'm a terrible person. Dx You all have permission to stalk, kill, maim, beat, or sick Griffin or Mercy on me at any time for making you all wait so long.**

**I have a lot of reviews to reply to—no wonder! It's been two years! So here we go.**

**Bellatrix Kale: I know, David and Millie are annoying. Unfortunately, they figure into some plans of mine, so I regret to inform you... they show up again. D:**

**Love it!: Thank you, Darling. I'm glad you enjoy my fanfic. I apologize for the long wait between updates. Unfortunately, I am notorious for this. **

**ShadowWolfDagger: I'm sorry I didn't update soon like you asked. Dx I'm going to do my best to get better at that. Now that I'm starting again, I'm going to try to update at least once a month! Thank you for your compliments on the plushies, I'm glad you like them. They make me smile. I think I want to do some more art involving Griffin and Mercy. Hope you enjoy this chapter! It's been a long time coming and I don't want to disappoint!**

**17NoLongerUsingAccount: I don't know if you changed your account name and are not using it anymore, but I'm glad I got your review anyway! Thank you!**

**I HAVE NO NAME!: Yeahh... well, you were right to bug me, and always will be. Dx Glad you liked the last chapter, though.**

**xXNeverThereXx: Sorry I took so long for the chapter update. I would have liked it if David were beat to a pulp too... but it didn't seem right at the time. Perhaps later. ;]**

**YagamiNeko: Thank you so much! I too love the Griffin-badassery going on. And the GriffinxMercy cuteness too. 3 Hope you enjoy this chapter. Sorry it took so long. **

**I see nothing! NOTHING!: Dx A long time from when you reviewed that, I apologize.**

**InxLovexWithxEdward: Thank you, darling. I do hope you enjoy this chapter as well.**

**Mindy Morganna: Thank you for all of your support! Even when I'm not updating for years, I do still read the reviews when they come to my email! So your support is much loved and appreciated.**

**evilspoofauthor1Sven: Thank you, thank you, thank you. I'm sorry I took so long to come back to it, but here I am, late as per usual! I do hope you continue to read this and enjoy it. And don't hesitate to get on me about updating! Also, feel free to message me a link to your story? I would enjoy seeing Griffin running about. :3**

**wolfdog127: I'm glad you enjoy the pictures. :3 I plan on making quite a few more.**

**Penmaster51: Thank you for all of the lovely compliments! I'm glad you enjoy Mercy and I was able to change your mind about a GriffinxOC fanfic. Please! Take a plushie! -tugs string- GET WRITING, YOU BLOODY FAILURE!**

… **I think that was directed at me. D:**

**Rawr: Yes, yes. I know. Dx**

**CMDonovann: Thank you for the reviews, glad you're overall liking it, though I'm sorry Griffin's comfiness with Mercy seemed a little rushed. Dx I hope this makes it better? -offers plushie and pulls string- BLOODY ARSE! Hmm. He does like to say that a lot...**

**Check: THANK YOU. I know, I'm a terrible person, leaving you all hanging... but here it is, finally. You all deserve good things for your patience. Dx I hope you enjoy this coming chapter. Thank you for the uplifting and encouraging review, and the compliments!**

**ANARCHY RULES: Yes, I know. D: Thank you. I won't make you beg anymore.**

**ArandoraStar: It was your review that finally did it for me! (well, and the fact that I was sick at home doing nothing...) But thank you! I am very sorry for this, and I'm glad to say that I am once more inspired to write about Griffin and Mercy! Take a plushie, cuddle it, and let's begin!**

**So, to everyone who has stuck with me since the beginning, thank you, and I'm sorry. I really have no excuse for my innate laziness! D: Let us begin with the long awaited chapter seventeen, yes?**

The next day found Mercy waking up with a pounding headache. Groaning and rolling over, she fell off of her cot and onto the cement floor. The fall jarred her bones painfully, and caused her already throbbing head to pound harder.

Mercy let loose a jumbled stream of curse words, pressing her hot face to the cool cement of the floor before her voice began to trail off. Hearing a small sigh from nearby, she resisted the urge to open her eyes, knowing that light intruding on them would hurt pretty badly, even as Griffin started to speak.

"You look like Hell froze over, Mercy love." There was an amused tone to his voice. "Guess you're a lightweight, huh?"

"If I wasn't incapacitated by my terrible hangover right now, I'd probably kill you." She mumbled, remaining perfectly still.

"Poor Mercy. But I thought we'd already explored that idea. _You're_ the one who saved me from the bloody Paladins."

Mercy opened one eye, looking up at Griffin to find him crouched nearby, looking like he wanted to laugh very, very hard. "Maybe we can find a way to teleport through time and try again?"

"I've got a better idea."

Mercy closed her eyes and sighed. "Sure, what?"

"How about I take you to breakfast?"

Mercy groaned. "Griffin, I don't know if you've ever experienced a hangover before, but I can tell you that I'll probably throw it all up."

Griffin chuckled. "Trust me. I've got the perfect cure. Grease."

"Eew."

"C'mon. I'm sure you want to change your clothes and brush your hair or whatever."

"Yeah... no. I think I'm going to stay right here."

"Well, okay, but don't blame me when people stare at you because you look like crap." He said with a micheivous grin.

"Damn you. My vain, paranoid, female instincts are kicking in." She struggled to her feet and then staggered drunkenly over to the smaller section of the cave where they usually changed. Fifteen minutes later, she emerged, dressed in clean clothes, her hair brushed, and her makeup fixed. Griffin caught her arm and supported her, a crooked grin lighting his features.

"I am never going to a bar with you again." She groaned.

"Oh, stop being so melodramatic." He said, wrapping an arm around her. Once again, he had on his leather jacket, a black t-shirt, and blue jeans. Mercy had thrown together an outfit that consisted of light jeans and a pale blue shirt.

Griffin jumped them away and Mercy blinked as they turned a corner and were suddenly face-to-face with their destination. "Denny's? Are you serious?"

"Serious." Griffin affirmed, guiding her through the door of the San Diego Denny's.

"I'm gonna throw up."

"No you're not."

They were seated quickly, and Mercy immediately put her head down on the table. Griffin ordered for the both of them, and then waited patiently for their food to arrive. Soon the waitress brought their plates and Griffin had to wake Mercy up so that she could eat. For her, he'd ordered bacon, eggs, sausage, and hashbrowns, all as greasy and salty as they could be made.

"Eat. It'll make you feel better." Mercy looked doubtful, but started on her food despite. Griffin began to devour his own, pancakes, eggs, bacon, and toast. When he had wolfed down all of thi sfood, he looked over to Mercy, who seemed to have regained her appetite, and was attacking her food with renewed vigor, already looking more like herself.

"Told you."

She looked up, finishing her mouthful before talking. "You must have experience with hangovers or something."

"Hinting that I'm an alcoholic? Not even close. I just happen to know the miracle cures for every ailiment."

"Mhm. Sure, sure." Mercy said before turning back to her plate. She finished, drank down the last of her orange juice, and then looked over to Griffin. At his tenseness and wary expression, she paled.

"Don't look now. Two Paladins, three o'clock." His eyes followed something behind her, even as he lifted his glass to guzzle his milk.

"It's already three o'clock?"

"Military terms, Mercy. I'll explain it later."

"Oh."

The waitress arrived, and Griffin looked up as she started to take away one of his plates. "Thank you. Check please?" She nodded and sauntered off, Griffin's gaze returning to the two Paladins and then flicking away. "They're watchin gus. I think they know."

"Uh oh."

"Talk to me."

"About what?"

"Anything."

"Okay..." Mercy searched for something to say as Griffin stared at her. "You have... pretty eyes?"

He was so taken aback by the compliment that he laughed. " 'Pretty eyes'? Really now?"

"Yeah, they're like, this trippy blue color, but not icy."

"No?"

"No, like a calm blue-green sometimes, or a stormy blue-gray."

"Well, I'll take that as a compliment."

"It was a compliment. I said 'pretty', didn't I?" Mercy asked, matching Griffin's amused smirk with her own.

"Well, you have bloody gorgeous emeralds for eyes. There. I out-complimented you." He said, grinning at her.

It was Mercy's turn to laugh. Then the waitress showed up with the check. Griffin thanked the woman and left the money on the table, along with a good sized tip. He then helped Mercy up, escorting her out of the Denny's with his arm around her shoulders. They continued with their compliment game until Mercy changed it.

"Well, you're stubborn."

"You are too, pup."

"Un-official-partner-in-crime, remember? And you're a hot-headed prick."

"Ouch. Well, you're an incompetent little Paladin hunter apprentice."

This game was much easier for them, as insults came more naturally to their tongues. Eventually it got old, though, and they lapsed into a contented silence, which Mercy eventually broke.

"Did they follow us?" She whispered, glancing up at Griffin.

He nodded, looking down at her. He was only about an inch taller than her, but it was enough. "Don't look, though. I think they called reinforcements. We'll head into an alley and jump away."

Mercy nodded slightly and let him lead her around a corner. As soon as they turned, he jumped them away. They ended up over the English Channel, Mercy's new trick, fell a few yards, Griffin holding onto Mercy and whooping like a madman, before they ended up in a heap on the couch.

Mercy sat up, looking irritated and a little nauseous. "You could have warned me. Hangover, remember?"

"Aw, you're fine, you sodding drama queen." He said, grinning up at her from his lazy position draped over the couch. Mercy sighed, shook her head, and then got up.

"Whatcha doin'?"

"Aren't we going to get a baseball bat and finish off those Paladins?"

"Nah."

Mercy had never seen Griffin so laid back and cool about leaving a couple of Paladins alive. She laughed at this, earning an odd look from him.

"San Diego's not safe anymore. We have to remember that now. Maybe we can do some Paladin hunting there one day."

Mercy nodded and then started violently at a sudden jingle from across the room. As she headed over to her cot, Griffin sat up. "What was that?"

Mercy picked up a small device off of the ground, flipping it open and checking the screen. "A cell phone." She said absently.

"When did you get that?"

"Oh, a while ago."

"So I've been footing a cell phone bill this whole time? What kind of plan do you have, anyway?"

"It's pay-as-you-go. No billing address or credit card numbers needed."

Griffin stared at her for a moment, looking like he didn't know whether or not to be mad. "Okay, so who the hell is calling you?"

"Texting." Mercy corrected.

"Yeah, whatever. Who has your number? What would you even use a phone for anyway?"

"I got it because I liked calling in orders at our favorite pizza place. Plus, I call the laundromat and dry cleaner's, as well as my favorite clothing stores to see if orders come in. I really don't use it that much."

"Who texted you?"

"Millie."

Griffin's jaw dropped. "Where did _Millie_ get your number?"

"I gave it to her last night at the bar." Mercy looked up. "You aren't mad, are you?"

"She and David want to take us to dinner."

"What? No. Fucking. Way. We aren't going."

"I already said yes..."

"I'm so mad at you right now." Griffin growled.

"Oh, come on. David's sorry! He wants to make it up to you."

"Where?"

"Some semi-fancy place in New York."

Griffin groaned. "I hate you."

"Please, Griffin?"

"I won't wear a suit. No way, no how, no ifs, ands or buts."

"I've got a button up shirt like the one you wore last night."

He groaned again. "You'll be the death of me."

"So you'll come?"

"Fine."

Mercy jumped up and down in excitement. "Ooo, yay!"

"Tell them not to jump anywhere in or around New York. We don't want Paladin trouble."

"Okay."

"Tell them to take a cab or something."

"Alright."

"And... how long have you two been planning this?"

"We started talking about it last night when you left with David."

Griffin sighed, and then spoke gruffly. "Alright. When?"

**Alrightie then, lovelies. I do hope you enjoyed this chapter. Not much action, and it's probably kind of short. I'm sure it disappointed you. D: See why I got bored and didn't want to type it out? Just a lot of playful banter, really... anyway, I plan on having another chapter up within a couple of days, because I have the beginning of that already written as well...**

**And it should have more action!**

**Remember, photobucket has pictures of love. User: werewolfness, Password: mercedes . Also! I am still (yes, even after two whole _years_) taking soundtrack suggestions! Feel free to send them in a review, tell me how terrible I am, threaten me if I don't update soon, etc. **

**I love you!**

**-Wolfie.**


	18. Broken Bottle

Chapter 18: Broken Bottle

**Here's to hoping I haven't lost readers over the course of two years since my last post… Review responses first and foremost, as usual.**

**Ruby10294: Thanks for the review. I'm glad you enjoy my fanfic, and I'm sorry you had to wait so long again. I hope you enjoy this update.**

**John Smith/IHAVENONAME/007: I believe you're the same person, so. Haha. I'm glad you enjoy. And though you're right, I don't like David, he does have a point and I'm trying to get Griffin to realize it. Griffin doesn't want to, but we're taking it slowly (as you can see from two years of no updating..?) Anyway. Here you are!**

**ArandoraStar: I hope you enjoy the dinner, and don't worry, totally normal stuff happens. Lolol. **

**BritanyJean: I'm glad you like this fanfic, and I'm even more so glad that you think I've written it well. Hopefully after a two year absence, I'll seem even better of a writer to you (and I do feel I have definitely improved). I just hope it doesn't seem too awkward of a difference. Haha. I don't know how much I've changed. .**

**Valkyrii: Thank you for the constructive criticism. I feel like the whole story needs a revamp once it's done, since I've written it over the course of four or five years, with giant breaks in between, so my ideas/pacing changed drastically from time to time, and I think that's what you're experiencing. I feel like my writing has much improved since the last time I updated, so hopefully you'll continue to overall enjoy it. If I ever go through and polish it/even it out, I'll be sure to let you know and see what you think. (:**

** : My sincerest apologies for the lack of update. Here you go, you deserve this. Also, feel free to threaten me if I give you too long of a wait between chapters again.**

**Lovebuggy: I do believe you've been around since the beginning, and I want to thank you for continuing to read and sticking with me through my horrible absences. I'm glad you enjoyed the story so far and I hope that I remain up to par, and that you enjoy this as well. Here's to hoping my next update doesn't take two whole years again!**

**SissorSplit: Glad you enjoyed! Sorry to keep you waiting. I hope you like this chapter as much as the rest. (:**

**LuLeo: Haha. Well, I'm glad you left a review after all. Here's a long-awaited, well-deserved chapter update for you.**

**Jumper fan: Sorry, sorry, sorry! Dx I'm so grateful you enjoyed the story, and I'm so sorry you've been waiting for another update. Here! Take it! D;**

**Anon: My bad. I'm glad you think it's one of the greatest ever. ); Here's an update for you.**

**Theeminator10: I'm sorry! Here you go, late, as usual. D; I just hope you think it's worth the wait.**

**Animals are my life: I didn't update soon. . Here's one, finally. I'm glad you like my story. Please keep reading!**

**Are You Afraid Yet: I'm glad you're in love with this story. It makes me so happy to hear that. Thanks for reading, and I'm soooo sorry for the wait on this update.**

**Crusherccme: I'm glad you enjoyed it, sorry for the wait. D;**

**LadyMorph18: I need Griffin sicced on me, I deserve it. I totally lied about updating. Dx Finally, here you have your well-deserved chapter. Don't hate me. ):**

**Trinityjean: Sorry! Here you go!**

**Not gonna waste words, just go ahead and read, guys. **

Griffin scowled as he righted his shirt, yanking impatiently at the cloth. Button up shirts were not his favorite item out of his wardrobe, and he never wore them two nights in a row. He didn't care if Mercy wanted him to wear a tie—he didn't own any, and wouldn't wear one even if he did. It was too easy to choke someone who was wearing a tie, he knew from experience, and he wasn't about to put himself in such a position.

He wished he was wearing his favorite t-shirt and lounging on his couch watching old movies right about now.

"Can I come in? Are you decent?"

"Yeah." Griffin snapped, still fumbling with the shirt. His hands moved up the shirt, buttoning as they went. Mercy slipped into the small section of the cave with him, scanning him up and down as he turned to cast his slightly irritated glance her way.

"Oh, Griffin, it looks great on you!" She was already close to him, since the space was so small, and she closed that distance completely by throwing her arms around his neck for a moment. Griffin paused in his buttoning, his scowl softening slightly, and she pulled back, a grin on her features as she fixed his collar. "It brings out the blue in your eyes."

He had to admit; she'd chosen the shirt's color well, something between light blue and gray, slightly metallic and silky. He supposed it wasn't too bad, as long as he didn't have to wear a tie or button it all the way to the top. He rewarded her with a small smile. "You sound like such a bloody girl, Mercy."

"Well, I am a girl, so get over it." She released the collar she'd fixed, smoothed the material across his shoulders, and then took over his buttoning.

Griffin stilled and let his hands drop, looking the inch down at her with a small, bewildered smile on his face. He was unintentionally and extremely conscious of how close she was to him, and part of him hated it as much as the other half of him relished in it. He didn't want to be dragged along to dinner with David and Millie, but Mercy was hard for him to resist, and he couldn't stay mad at her for it for long. He didn't want to admit it, but he thought that David might have been right. If it meant choosing between killing Roland and saving her…? The choice he'd make was a simple one that went against everything he'd taught himself since the day his parents had died. The revelation unsettled him, scared him, even. But perhaps, since she was a Jumper, like him, things would turn out differently than they had before.

She finished buttoning his shirt and looked up, meeting his eyes unexpectedly. She stared at him for a moment, and then blinked. "What's wrong?"

He shook his head and flashed her a grin, leaning over to kiss her forehead. "It's nothing, Mercy. Your turn to get ready, yeah?" He brushed past her and through the curtain into the larger part of the lair, escaping, heart pounding.

_Idiot. No feelings, no attachments, remember? You know what happens._

He cast a gloomy look towards the curtain, behind which Mercy was getting dressed. _You let her kiss you, kiss her back, and what does that lead to? Sex? And then what? She's your girlfriend? You just hunt Paladins and go on about your merry fucking way?_

When Mercy emerged, Griffin was still lost in thought, and he looked up distractedly. When his eyes fell on her, however, what he saw stunned it all out of his head.

She was clothed in a black dress of slick looking fabric, slitted to just above her knees on both sides, with the neckline cut to reveal her shoulders. It hugged her curves suggestively, and Griffin could only stare, speechless.

"Well?" Her makeup was different, too, but Griffin couldn't really tell how, he wasn't well versed in such things. Still, he could see the question in her glittering emerald eyes, and the vulnerable tilt to her lips.

He opened his mouth to say something, couldn't find a word to utter, and closed it again.

"It's the dress, isn't it? It's a little much. I can go change…" She turned hastily to go back through the curtain. He was waiting for her on the other side, and caught her in his arms as she yelped in surprise.

"Don't, please…" He muttered, not meeting her eyes. "It looks… great…"

She eyed him suspiciously for a moment, and then a small smile curled up the corners of her lips. "You think so?"

He nodded mutely, and her smile widened. She leaned into his chest, bringing her face inches from his. "Yours is the only opinion I care about."

Then they were kissing, and all thoughts of what they shouldn't be doing were as far from Griffin's thoughts as anything ever could be. When he pulled away, they were both breathless, and he took a step back, letting his hands linger on her arms. There was a hunger in his eyes that she didn't recognize, that looked something like what she saw when he was hunting, but not the same at all. She grinned at him, and he frowned back at her.

"Ready to go, then? We still have to catch a cab." She said softly, and slipped her hand into his as he nodded. In another heartbeat, the lair was empty.

The cab ride lasted half an hour, because they'd chosen a place far enough away from their destination so as not to gain Paladin attention. The restaurant was higher end, though when Griffin protested, Mercy assured him that David was buying.

"On stolen bank notes, no doubt." He muttered heatedly, but said no more. They met the couple at the door, exchanged greetings, and were seated at the restaurant. There was a bit of awkward tension between David and Griffin, but the girls got along well, and did enough talking for the four of them put together.

Griffin spent most of the evening in quiet contemplation or watching Mercy enjoy herself. While he was out of his element in a button up shirt and a restaurant that served hundred dollar bottles of wine, she was enjoying herself thoroughly, and he could see without a doubt that she must have had a lot of friends before the Paladins. He wondered if it bothered her that she was stuck with just him in a cave in the tropics. He didn't require social interaction, but she did.

Though he had ignored David for much of the night, when it came time to pay the bill and he paid in cash, Griffin couldn't resist slipping in a snarky comment.

"Nice to know you haven't changed. Still stealing from banks, Davie-boy?"

David shot him a glare. "Am I supposed to get a job somewhere? Do tell where you get your own funds."

"I have a job, and it's hunting Paladins. Tried to get you in on that one, but you sort of left me hanging."

The all-too literal language that Griffin used caused David to burst into genuine laughter, and Griffin seemed a little irked for a moment, before he relaxed slightly and shrugged. "It pays well enough for me. At least I don't steal from people who are going to keep using their money."

At that moment, the server came back with David's change, which he left as a generous tip on the table as they stood to leave.

David continued their conversation on the way out. "If you think about it, I don't steal from people at all. I steal from corporations, and they don't really need all that money, do they?"

"Do you?"

"What, need all that money? Sure. Better me than them."

Griffin shrugged, bored with the conversation already and becoming irritable. He slipped over to Mercy and touched her arm. She turned to face him, and he was struck by how happy she looked. He didn't know what she and Millie had been talking about, but whatever it was, she had enjoyed the subject. Part of him didn't want to ruin her fun. She guessed what he wanted anyway.

"Well, we'd better get going, Paladins to hunt, you know." She said, glancing between Millie and David. "Thanks so much for dinner, it was great! We really should do it again." David and Griffin were quick to say farewell, though Millie and Mercy shared a few more words before hugging, and then finally parting.

When they were walking off down the street alone at last, Griffin stole a glance in her direction. She caught his gaze, grinned at him, and linked her arm with his. "That wasn't so bad, was it? You guys seemed to get along fine to me."

"For two people who want nothing to do with each other, I'm sure you're right. We're definitely good at pretending to be civil, anyway." He replied, wrinkling his nose with disdain. She laughed.

"You enjoyed yourself, don't lie."

"I enjoyed you." He responded truthfully, and she turned to face him again, her expression quizzical.

"I don't—"

"Don't fret too much over it, Mercy. I'm not social, but I can appreciate the fact that you are. It was nice to see you enjoying yourself, love."

She smiled softly. "Well, I can accept that, at least. We're going to do it again someday."

"I'll be there." He grinned. "And I'll ignore that bloody imbecile David all over again. Won't that be fun?"

She nudged his shoulder as if reprimanding him, but there was a smile on her face as well. They turned down an alley and prepared to jump home.

Footsteps echoed behind them, and Mercy glanced over her shoulder, a smile still on her face. Her eyes widened, however, and she pushed Griffin aside abruptly. A shot rang out as Griffin fell to one knee from the force of Mercy's push. Blood sprayed, droplets falling on his hands. He stared, uncomprehending for a moment, but running footsteps took his attention next. He turned, in time to see a green bottle swinging straight for his face.

Blackness enveloped him.

It was only a few moments before he regained consciousness, but it was enough to leave him feeling unsettled and groggy. He opened his eyes to a night sky and a brick wall rising into the stars. He blinked, something sticky and warm was running down his forehead and into his hair. He raised his arm, despite the feeling that his whole body was asleep without him, and touched it, bringing his fingers in front of his eyes to find them bloodied.

Blood. Mercy.

He started, then, and suddenly registered what he was hearing. A woman, sobbing and calling out—calling out a name, his name.

He sat bolt upright, in spite of the dizziness that sent him reeling and the throbbing pain in his head. _What the fuck is going on?! Mercy!_

He turned, scrambling to his feet, taking in the scene before him. Mercy was backed into a corner, bleeding from a wound on her arm, her makeup streaked from tears, eyes fixed on the three men surrounding her.

"So, doll, where's the money? Your boy over there don't have none, so you must be the one with it, eh? Give it to us and maybe we'll let you go without hurting you more."

"I don't have any money." She said, voice shaking slightly.

"Oh, that's too bad." Another of the men said, grinning sickly and grabbing her bleeding arm. She yelped from the pain, and he laughed. "What do you think, boys? No money. Should we have some fun instead?"

Griffin could see her terror, see that she was frozen with it. Finally he was standing, if unsteadily, and a black rage filled him to the brim. These men were even worse than the Paladins. He looked around for a weapon, but he hadn't brought one and the bottle that they'd used to knock him out had broken, the neck still in the hands of one of the men, jagged edges held out in Mercy's direction.

It took him a moment to find the place in himself that allowed him to jump. When he did, he ignored the sick feeling that rose in him and forced it. It hurt, for the first time in a long time, but he ended up where he'd planned, in the air over the man with the bottle. Leaving behind a jumpscar bigger than he'd ever seen, he fell through the air with a snarl, landing squarely on the man's shoulders. He went down, bones cracking, barely able to breath enough to scream, and Griffin snatched up the bottle.

The other two men looked at him with alarm, and the one with his hand around Mercy's arm squeezed. She gasped, and Griffin nearly couldn't form words around his anger. "Let her go." He growled, motioning with the bottle.

"No." The man holding her snarled back, grinning sickly and lifting his other hand.

The gun. Griffin had forgotten the gun. It was now right in Mercy's face, and he almost couldn't breathe.

"Just leave, boy. Before we hurt her more than we want to."

Griffin stood absolutely still for a moment, and then dropped the bottle.

"Good. Now turn around and walk away."

Griffin's stormy eyes glittered. He was calculating beyond the pain in his head, his gaze flicking between the two men and Mercy, who stood completely silent and still, and instead of looking to the gun or her assailants, chose instead to fix her gaze on him. He was caught for a moment on her eyes, and he saw them calm as she let out a breath.

She trusted him to do what he thought was best to save her. He nodded, and then fixed his gaze back on the man with the gun.

"Well?"

Griffin took a slow step back, not breaking his gaze, and the man grinned. "Good boy."

But Griffin's eyes held no surrender, no meek acceptance of the circumstances. They burned with unbridled fury, glimmering with a promise of pain. If the man didn't take that look seriously, that wasn't Griffin's fault. He took another step back, and then vanished.

The men broke into curses, and the one with the gun pulled it away from Mercy to point it around them.

"Where the fuck…?"

Griffin slipped out of the shadow behind him, gripping the hand holding the gun and twisting it. His movements were practiced and fluid, and his fingertips, which had been placed precisely over important tendons, did their work—the gun clattered to the ground and the man screamed in pain. That was cut off all-too quickly with one jab to the throat, and he fell to his knees, choking, as Griffin bent to pick up the gun with slow and deliberate movements. The other male bolted. Griffin watched him run with smoldering eyes, glanced down to the man on the ground, who was still struggling to breathe, gave him a kick for good measure, and then swayed from dizziness as his head spun.

Shaking his head and wincing, he rubbed his face with the hand holding the gun, looked at the gun like he didn't know why it was in his hand, and then glanced to Mercy. Alarm flashed across his face, then, and he shoved the gun into his pantline, moving over to her and gingerly, but hastily, examining her arm.

"It's just a graze, I'm fine." She said, trying to hide the tremor in her voice.

He shook his head again, ripped a piece of fabric from his shirt, and gently but firmly bandaged the wound to staunch the bleeding.

"Griffin, seriously, I'm more worried about you. That hit you took to your head, you could have a concussion."

"I'm okay." He growled, finally satisfied that her wound was taken care of for the time being. He grabbed her hand then, like he was going to jump them home, and then shook his head again, pinching the bridge of his nose with a grimace as he tried not to sway. "Maybe you should jump us home, though."

She looked at him with concern, eying the blood flowing sluggishly from his forehead warily, but she nodded.

"Be gentle, please." He said weakly, closing his eyes. Before the man could breathe properly again, they were gone, as if they hadn't even existed. Once he could take in air, he bolted too.

**I'm sorry it took so long. I'm not going to make promises I can't keep for the next chapter, but considering the fact that I'm going to make it sort of sexy, and I want some action to go on soon, I should be less lazy. As a college student, I'm busy sometimes, so I have a problem with doing other things. I'm so grateful to all of you who are still reading, and who have been reading from the beginning. I love you all so much and I hope you stick with me until the end. It's not too far off! I think, anyway. Haha. Characters. They have a mind of their own, don't they?**

**Until next time,**

**-Wolfie**


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